The Misconception of Heaven and Hell
by emachiin
Summary: The Thousand-Year Blood War was nothing more than a regretful memory. Reconstruction was the top priority. No one would have thought that a new enemy was going to strike again, not that soon. Taking everyone by surprise, the new foe took advantage of the situation. "Where did it come from? Why did they take my sister?" Saving his sister was Ichigo's new mission. {Hiatus}
1. Pilot: Teki

**A/N**: Bleach Fanfic. There a few modifications in this story. (1) 4th Division's Captain Unohana did not die while fighting Kenpachi, but was severely injured. (2) 3rd Division's Lieutenant Kira did not die from his wounds. (3) There are a few created characters for the purpose of this fiction. That's about that. (Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach, but almighty Tite Kubo does.)  
[Warning: Language, Violence, Character Death, Romance]

* * *

**Pilot Chapter**  
**Teki (敵****)**

The Seireitei was slowly recovering from the last war. The Quincy had ravaged Soul Society, which left deep scars both physically and psychologically. Now was the time of reconstruction. There was much to do. Even the Human World and Hueco Mundo were recovering. Slowly, Gotei 13 became fully functional.

As for Ichigo and his friends, although they looked fine, they were a bit of an emotional wreck. During the war, Ichigo had to fight Uryu, a former comrade, since they were in different sides. Their friendship was no longer the same.

At last, Ichigo was home. He did not come alone. Rukia, Renji, Mudarame, Ayasegawa, Matsumoto and Hitsugaya came along. Ichigo's classmates also came. Yuzu was so happy to see them, it had been a while since Ichigo brought friends home, and she welcomed them with a feast. Strangely, Urahara and company appeared.

Ichigo was happy to be home, though he did not show it much. He was glad that at least nothing changed home.

It was about night time now. The Shinigamis and Ichigo were in the usual room, Ichigo's bedroom. Ichigo's human friends left, because of various reasons like school or work. Urahara left with Isshin to discuss about some important matters. Yuzu was cleaning up, and Karin was keeping her company, since she was not really good in housework.

"Isn't it great," Yuzu said while washing the dishes. "Everyone was smiling."  
"Right," Karin simply replied, focused on her DS.  
"I wish everyday was like this," Yuzu continued.  
"Yeah, sure," her twin replied.

Yuzu knew that Karin was not really listening, but she did not care much. It was mostly like this.

Ichigo's room  
"Vacation~" Matsumoto beamed. "I wish everyday was like this."

Hitsugaya eyed his lieutenant, but did not comment. She was 99.9% of the time on vacation since she was never doing work in the office.

"Yuzu excelled herself today," Rukia said. Everyone agreed.  
"Do you guys really have to stay in my room?" Ichigo stared at the crowd. It was not that he did not like to spend time with them, but he felt sleepy. He was ignored by the Shinigamis, who were in a deep conversation.  
All of a sudden, they felt an abnormal reiatsu. It was overwhelming. Then, they heard a scream coming from downstairs.

"Yuzu, Karin," Ichigo yelled, running like a madman.

Everyone arrived downstairs, and fel on a traumatized Yuzu, who could do nothing but pointing in front of her. They turned their head to the pointed direction, and saw a huge hole in the wall.

"…Karin…" Yuzu managed to say in a whisper.

Ichigo impulsively ran in that direction in Shinigami form. The others followed leaving their gigai behind. What on earth was going on?

"This is no ordinary reiatsu. It's not even a hollow," Toshiro warned. "Watch out."  
"Yes, Hitsugaya-taicho," the Shinigamis said, before heading in various direction.

Ichigo could not think straight. He was yelling Karin's name and searching vehemently. At some point, he picked up a thin trail. He could feel her reiatsu. It was weaker than usual. Ichigo was praying that she was not hurt. He would have not be able to forgive himself, if one of his sisters would be hurt. As he was shuppoing nearer and nearer, he was thinking of his little sister. She had their father's features. The hair, the eyes...She had become strong, so strong that it took a lot to make her cry. She would risk her life for others too. His little sister ressembled him.

All of sudden, he saw a group. One of the members of the group was holding carelessly Karin with one arm. Ichigo noticed that the group was about to open the Seikaimon. There was no way he was going to let them leave with his sister. So, Ichigo went in offensive mode. "Getsuga Tensho" he yelled, before blowing away a few of them with the tremendous force of his attack. Of course, he was careful. He did not want to hurt his little sister in the process.

The group was caught by surprised by the Substitute Shinigami. Only one fell however. A few were injured from the attack. The one holding Karin was barely grazed.

"Well, well, well." He chuckled. "Don't cha want your lil'sis in one piece, little man?"

Ichigo kept himself collected. He had too.

"Who are you? Give me back, Karin," He ordered, menacingly.

Another fellow laughed. "Oh. Is he trying to act tough?"

The group laughed.

"This son of a bitch killed Mochi," another one said, while examining his fallen comrade.

"He won't be the only one, if you don't hand over my sister." Ichigo was serious.

The group stared at him. Some did not take him so seriously.

"He doesn't know who we are," one said behind Ichigo, who turned himself. "To answer your question. We call ourselves "Jukyokage", we are the ones dwelling in the dark."

"Jukyokage?" Ichigo repeated. "Never heard of you guys, but one thing is for sure, you are going to give me back my sister."

Ichigo eyed the group. They all had masks on their plain white full masks on their faces. Ichigo could differenciate them. They were far from being humans, but also far from being hollows or arrancars, which meant that they were souls.

"Sorry, we were ordered to bring back two humans, important to our cause," one replied, possibly the sae.

"Cause?" Ichigo said. "I don't give a damn."

When Ichigo was about to fight them, they were joined by other comrades, and they also had the second human.

"Shinigamis were on us, and they're comin', boss, we got to move," someone said.

"Sorry, we cannot afford to fight the famous Substitute Shinigami and his friends," another voice said.

Ichigo did not have time to retort. All he remembered was being hit, before falling unconscious.

* * *

*teki: japanese for "enemy"


	2. 01: Akumu

**A/N**: Kubo-sama owns Bleach, not I. That is law.

* * *

Chapter 1  
Akumu (悪夢)

Time passed. Days became nights, nights became days. Weeks became months, months became weeks. Since that day, Ichigo had heard nor seen his little sister. Everything changed. They had just came out of a war. They were celebrating a bittersweet happy ending. Ichigo was hating himself. He had not been strong enough. How strong were those enemies, since they managed to escape so easily. How could they have been stronger than him? How was it possible?

Every time, Ichigo would look inside the twins' room, all these questions resurfaced. The guilt was overwhelming. His whole family changed. His father would work more hours. Isshin even stopped surprise attack his son. As for Yuzu, she would work her ass off in school and at home. Though she tried so hard to keep a smile, she would go to her room and cry. After the incident, she began to see what was invisible to her. She could see what her sister would always see.

Day after day, the Substitute Shinigami would search for his sister. When Rukia or Renji would visit, he would always ask them for any good news, but, sadly, both would not have any. The only solid evidence of the Jukyokage was the dead one.

"Bye, I'm going to school now," Ichigo said, one day, leaving.

It was sort of lying. He went to Urahara's shop. He wondered if the store owner had find anything new on this cold case. He had a little hope. Urahara and Yoruichi were a great investigating team. Even if he had this little light of hope, he was still ready for the worse.

As he entered the store, he was greeted with a Urahara who was running left and right, which was a rare sight. The man was not even tidily dressed.

"Ichigo!" he exclaimed. "I was about to go to your house."

"What's wrong?" Ichigo asked.

"Something happened. I need your father. Go to the clinic and tell your father to urgently prepare to beds," Urahara replied, before heading out.

The orange-head blinked a couple of times, then ran to the clinic. As soon as Isshin heard his son's story, he did as told. There was a spared room in the back of the clinic. So that was perfect.

Urahara arrived an hour or two later with Tessai and Jinta, who had two envelopped beings in their hands. Ichigo was confused. Were they bringing dead bodies? Was that the news? Why would Urahara be that cruel to bring two dead bodies to the clinic?

"It better not be a bad joke," Ichigo warned, tense.

"No, they are alive," Urahara assured.

Tessai and Jinta dropped each body on a bed, and took of the cloth that was covering each.

Tears started to fall on Ichigo's face. One of them was Karin. After months, they had found Karin's body. She did not seem alive; yet, Urahara stated otherwise. Isshin kept his cool, but tears were threatning to fall.

"I still don't know how to explain this discovery," Urahara started. "Two days ago, these two appeared on the shore of the river, where they were kidnapped. At first, I thought they were dead, then, it happened." He walked next to Karin's body and pointed fresh wounds. Then, he went to the other body, the boy, and pointed his left eye. "They are recovering at the moment. But, I was there when it happened. Scars started to appear, blood started to spill. It was like if they were fighting."

"How's that possible?" Ichigo asked.

"Perhaps their soul were injured, and it reflected on their body, but that's absolutely impossible," Isshin answered, out of the blue.

"Not, impossible, since it's what is going on," Urahara said. "It's interesting. Also." Urahara moved, and pointed something that did not catch the other's eyes. "They still have their chain, which confirms that they are living."

"So, if we go with what you say..." Ichigo stopped himself. "How long do they have to live?"

"As long as they stay alive, where they are," Urahara replied, grinning.

"I'm so sorry, Masaki!" Isshin _dramatically_ cried.

Urahara patted Isshin's shoulder. He felt bad that he could nothing. Shortly after delivering the news, he left with his employees. Ichigo left with them.

"Yoruichi left for Soul Society, yesterday. It gave us a new hope in the investigation. If their bodies are here; therefore, their souls are in one of the other two worlds," Urahara told Ichigo.

"Jukyokage..."Ichigo whispered. "I will find you."

"Karin is strong. She's a Kurosaki. She'll survive," Urahara said lightly with a smile.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Ichigo asked irritated.

Urahara chuckled.

Isshin sat there looking at his baby girl. He pat her head gently. Then, he turned to the boy, a young teenager of roughly fifteen or sixteen years old. "Poor parents," he thought. Unlike them, Isshin had the luxury to see is daughter and be with her. He decided that he would be a surrogate father for the time being to his boy.

Yoruichi returned from Soul Society a week later. She did not come alone. Urahara stared blankly at the armada that came along.

"Hitsugaya-taicho, Matsumoto-fukutaicho, Mudarame, Yumichika, Renji-fukutaicho, Rukia-fukutaicho" he greeted them. "Oh, Nemu-fukutaicho?" Seeing Nemu was unexpected.

"Mayuri-sama is occupied at the moment," she explained.

Urahara nodded. "Oh~"

"We came to see Kurosaki Karin and the unnamed boy's body," Hitsugaya informed. "Also to brief you with the latest news."

"Finally, things are picking up," Urahara smile.

"There are not good, though," Hitsugaya added. "More questions, then answers."

At the same time, Ichigo appeared. He had heard the conversation, and stormed in.

"What are the news, Toshiro?" he asked.

"It's Hitsugaya-...I'm letting it slide," Hitsugaya sighed. It was an exceptional moment in Ichigo's life. Hitsugaya was being 'considerate'.

The whole group went in the usual room in Urahara's shop and sat there.

"While I was investigating in the Rukongai, I heard a few well-founded rumors about a rising evil," Yoruichi started. "According to the locals, young souls are kidnapped in the poorer districts. They are not talking about any shady gangster group or hollows; they talk about people in white masks."

"White masks." Ichigo balled his fists.

"Exactly," Hitsugaya continued. "Usually we would have ignored it, and prioritized hollows; however, Kurotsuchi-taicho noticed that the kidnappings had a certain effect on everything. It's not major, but it's to watch."

"The question we should ask ourselves is 'why do the Jukyokage kidnap souls?'" Urahara said.

"First, we have to first answer 'why do the Jukyokage exist' and 'what are their motives'," Rukia retorted.

"It's simple, they kidnap souls to build an army," Renji answered.

"Army. That explains the bruises on the bodies. They are training," Urahara exclaimed.

"...training..." Ichigo let out.

Everyone looked at him, feeling a little bad in their own way.

"To built this army, wouldn't they need space? If they were in Soul Society, we would have ound them by now," Matsumoto said, which surprised a few. Yes, sometimes Matsumoto could show a more serious and intelligent side.

"They aren't in the Human world. They aren't in Soul Society," said Yoruichi.

* * *

*akumu: japanese for "nightmare"


	3. 02: Samui

**A/N**: Kubo-sama owns Bleach, not I. This is Law. I own the Jukyokage, though ^^"

* * *

Chapter 2  
Samui (寒い)

She felt cold in this little cell that she now called room. Many days had passed, before she had completly lost track of time. Karin was in one of the corner of this cell, on floor. Hugging her knees, she close her eyes, and thought of the only people who kept her alive, willing to be alive. Strong as always and true to herself, she was not crying, but she was sad and lonely.

"...Ichi-nii...Yuzu...Otou-san..." she whispered softly.

She had one of the best and worst cell. There was a window in it, which was rare, so she could look outside from times to times. It was also one of the coldest rooms, since in the lower cells. The lower cells' floor was in stone, unlike the upper ones in wood.

The girl stood up, and walked towards the window. All she could see was snow. Endless snow. The sky was grey. Watching the snow, she reminisced her earlier memories. She remembered the people who barged into her house and captured her. She remembered when she woke up on a dirty piece of cloth they had put on the ground. She remembered seeing that boy a little older than her, who was right by her side. She remembered being forced to walk kilometers and kilometers from early in the morning to late at night. She remembered her journey: first, a thick forest; second, chain of small mountains; third, a valley of snow; last, a huge mountain where there was a castle built-in. After that journey, they locked her up in the cell. Since then, she remained alone there.

All of sudden, she heard a key inside a lock. Karin divert her attention to the door. A man entered with chains. She went to sit on her rustic bed in silence. She knew what was coming. The man put the chained her by the ankle, then left. She remembered the first time. The man came in, and she threw a tantrum until he slapped her. She fell on the ground, shocked. "You worth nothing, kid. Better be good, or we'll replace you," he warned her. From then on, she changed.

A woman entered with a needle in hand. She smiled, then struck. It stung, but Karin could handle that much 'pain'.

"It's your last one," she informed. "You'll be good to go."

Karin did not understand what she meant. The woman left, leaving Karin confused. The man re-entered, and held Karin's chains.

"We're moving," he said.

She stood up, and started to walk. They walked all the way to a large room with many other people around her age or a little older. All of them chained. All of them beaten to submission. They were pretty much like slaves. Everyone was dressed in rags.

They were given some kind of cape to cover themselves, before heading outside in the freezing wilderness.

Walking and walking, the group became smaller. When you stopped walking, the "guards" would beat you up. If you could no longer move, they would kill you. Many died from the cold, the exhaustion or the unwillingness. The ones still standing witnessed the killings. As the group became smaller, Karin felt like abandoning. Then, she remembered the people she cared about. She knew that she had to continue, even though the chances of seeing them again were slim.

At the end of the day, they stopped for the night. The guards had found a little shelter. It as too small for everyone to fit in, so they left the 'slaves' outside. In the morning, a few never woke up, dying in their sleep. It was a less brutal way of dying. They resumed their walk towards God knows where. Unlike the first day, the death rate was minimal. Karin overheard a conversation between two guards. "Only the strong survive," one of them said. Karin wished she could have retort. If she could, she would have told them that it was not, because they were strong, it was they are fighting to survive, because they had something that kept them alive. When you do not have something to hold on to, you fall into despair and abandon.

Their journey last three days. On their last day, they were no longer on the mountain, but a deep forest. In the forest was this place similar to a shinto temple, but way bigger and for another purpose. Each of the 'slaves' were assigned a room they shared with one or two others. A new beginning, Karin thought. There was a window in her new room. When night fell, she walked towards it, and glanced at the moon.

"...save me...Ichi-nii..." 

* * *

**A/N**: At first, I was planning to use Hueco Mundo, because it's one of the three worlds, then I changed my mind. Things are really going to pick up now...! I think you want to know who's the "boy" by now and who are the "Jukyokage". ^^".

*samui: japanese for "cold"  
*otou-san: japanese for father


	4. 03: Kage ni kakusa nete

**A/N**: Kubo-sama owns Bleach, not I. I own the ocs, though.

* * *

Chapter 3  
Kage ni kakusa nete (影に隠されて)

With new developments on the mysterious case, Hitsugaya's team were in charge of investigating the unknown rebellious group. "Jukyokage". The ones dwelling in the shadows. That was quite some name they given to themselves. Ruling out, the Human world and Soul Society, the team had headed in Hueco Mundo only to fall on a dead-end. Their enemies were not there. Dead end was not the right word. They gathered a new piece of information thanks to Nel. She told them that she fell face to face with a masked person. The mask was nothing near a hollow one, so it made her curious. She fought the figure, and wounded him.

She brought the team to the room she kept the person.

The moment they arrived, they noticed that the person was a soul looking in his thirties. When he saw them, he cackled.

"Visitors," he said in a cheeky tone.

Ichigo, who had accompanied the team to Hueco Mundo, wanted to beat him up, but Madarame and Renji made sure he would not move a muscle.

"Tell us about your organization, the Jukyokage," Hitsugaya ordered.

"Oh, a taicho. That's some fine visitors, Arrancar." the soul winked to Nel.

"Answer," Hitsugaya said coldly.

The man looked at the short white-haired and sighed.

"You think that you are so high and mighty, and it disgusts me, midget," the man said, which made Hitsugaya breath loudly. "Did I touch the touchy subject?" It made the man laugh. "Oh well, all I can tell you is that..." He stood up and walked towards them. "Perhaps, it could be finally the end. No rulers, nothing. Freedom and chaos for all souls. Total anarchy."

"Are you trying to joke?" Renji said, annoyed.

The man stared at the redhead, and smirked. He, then, fell on the ground. Rukia shunponed to his side, and sighed.

"He is dead," she confirmed.

"We're bringing his body to the Seireitei," dropped Hitsugaya, still irritated. This whole situation made no sense.

***

Back in Karakura Town, Hitsugaya briefed Urahara about their findings. He sent Nemu and Yumichika back to Soul Society with the body.

"I guess that there will never be one day without someone trying to rebel against the Soul King," mused Urahara.

Hitsugaya glared at the shop keeper, who was silently laughing behind his fan.

"Oi, taicho~" Matsumoto called. "What are we going to do now?"

"We are going to search for this group. Nel confirmed that they were not in Hueco Mundo. We would have felt their reiatsu by now, if they were in the Human world," answered the captain.

"Search somewhere freezing," a cat said, as she arrived.

"Freezing?" Matsumoto asked.

"According to Isshin, the bodies were cold," Urahara explained. "It happened while you investigating in Hueco Mundo."

"We shall leave for Soul Society." Hitsugaya said.

"They are coming."

"They finally realized."

"It's nothing to worry about."

"We are two steps ahead of them."

"What shall we do?"

"Pay them a visit."

"A surprise. A surprise would be fun."

***

Searching in Soul Society was like searching a needle in a haystack. The fact that their enemy were soul made everything harder. Their reiatsu was not much different from any locals in the Rukongai. After reporting his findings during a captain meeting, Kyoraku added Soi Fon to the team - she sent her subordinates around most of the time,when she was unavailable - and Kensei in the investigation unit. Kurotsuchi had now a new body to work with. One thing was sure, this new foe was going to attack. They had to be ready.

"Somewhere cold," Ichigo sighed. "That could be anywhere." He grew tired and frustrated. Where was his little sister?

"You are losing hope, Ichigo," Rukia told him, as she put a hand on his arm. "Karin is strong. We will find her." Rukia tried to keep that spark of hope, but day after day it withered.

The team focused on the lower districts and the farthest. That was pretty much the best area for a rebellion.

One day, the team focused their search in the 79th District, Kusajishi. They were deep in the forest, when they suddenly felt a huge wave of reiatsu.

"We have company," commented Kensei, in battle stance.

The team separated themselves to cover more ground. Kensei with his lieutenants, Hitsugaya with Matsumoto and Ikkaku, and Ichigo with Rukia and Renji. They heard a scream, and a body fell. One of Soi Fon's subordinates. Other bodies fell. It was raining bodies, almost.

"Over here," said a female childish voice. "Over here, over here."

The Shinigamis followed the voice, and fell on a woman sat on a branch of a tree. She had a mask on her face, different from the ones who kidnapped Karin. Her mask covered half her face. The borders were golden with intricate designs. Around the eyes, it was pink, and the rest was ivory white. She was wearing a dress that was gracefully weird combination of a corset and the lower part of a kimono of the same color as her mask. Her presence was hypnotizing. She was playing with the end of her dark hair, and singing a song.

"Who are you?" asked Ichigo.

"A messenger. I have a message for the Seireitei," she replied with a smile. "A message for the hero as well. The hero who's lost, hurt and hopeless."

"And what's that message?" asked Kensei.

Her eyes looked straight into Kensei's. It felt that she was intruding, like she was looking right into his soul.

"A handsome captain," she said. "One who was redeemed from a crime he did not necessarily commit. One who was betrayed by a fellow Shinigami, and who was forced to flee." She winked. "My message is simple, it is 'brace yourselves, we are coming.'"

"What is the meaning of this?" Ichigo said, he took his zankupatou out.

"Oh, young hero, now is not the time. Wait a little longer," she said. "Farewell." She stood up, and whispered "Jinseihiru."

Everything went dark after that. The Shinigamis simply fell on the ground.

***

"Have you delivered the message?"

"I have. They are unaware of the immensity of the threat."

"A new era is about to begin. The cards will be drop, and the mystery unfold." 

* * *

**A/N**: Just a little recap, there were the kidnappers who had plain white full face masks, and now there is 'her' who has a half-colorful mask (venetian style). Sorry for how slow it seems to pick up, but I'm creating a new enemy and stuff. It's not the Arrancar or Quincy we are used too. Don't forget the girl, she is important to remember. *winks*

*'jinsei' (life in japanesse) 'hiru' (leech in japanese): jinseihiru is a technique similar to Tosen's shikai ability except it takes all energy away and the opponent falls unconscious after that.


	5. 04: Tsuyoi

A/N: Kubo-sama owns Bleach, not I.

* * *

Chapter 4  
Tsuyoi (強い)

When she was alone, she would let her thoughts run free. She escaped the cruelty of reality, and find shelter in the peace of dreams. Those times when she could break free were rare. It was only late at night that she could dream. In this temple-like place, she could never fall asleep easily. She always felt unsafe. How many days had passed? Or was it years? She had counted 41 days since the deadly journey from the mountain castle to the forest hideout. During those days, she learned to fight and to survive. They would tell her that she was a "strong warrior", but deep down she felt weak. She started to abandon the idea that one day she would ever meet her family again; therefore, she had no purpose in life, no purpose to continue to live.

Karin had only slept three hours. When she woke up, she took refuge the corner right by the window, and looked at the sky. Slowly, the sun was coming out. It was not exactly sunrise, but the sky was starting to lighten up. Then, she heard the sound of a bell. It was time to wake up. Her roommates woke up and stood up in front of the door. She went behind them and waited. It was the procedure. Once the guard opened the door, if you were not in line, you were beaten.

The door opened, and the girls bowed. "Ohayo-gozaimasu," they said loudly in unison. Then, they went out of the room and waited in line in the hallway. Once every room were cleared, they would follow the guards all the way to the inner courtyard. After that, they would start their early morning training. Anyone who did well would have breakfast, which was a meager bowl of rice, a small piece of fish and water. Most of the times, this breakfast would be replace by a porridge similar to vegetables baby food. Other times, there was just a piece of bread. It all depends on the cook and guards. Everyone knew that, when there was not "enough" food for the guards, the "slaves" were penalized.

That day, the menu was bread. The people who were supposed to bring food to the temple did not make it. The rumor was that they were attacked by hollows according to the rumor. Not only was there only bread on the menu, there was not enough for everybody. Quarrels started due to that. The guards, instead of separating the fighters, were having a fun time watching.

Karin was a lucky one. She remained far from the rest to eat. She looked at the guards with contempt. They were the lowest of lows. There was food, but they were to selfish and greedy. They strongly preferred the chaos that was reigning, since it was "entertaining".

Breakfast time was over, and it was now the time for cleaning the hideout. Obviously it was the chores of the "slaves", the unworthy scums that should be grateful of being taught and being sheltered.

Karin was part of the unit who had the duty to clean the floors. It was one hell of a job. Back home, she would only have to use a mop, then again, it was always Yuzu who did the work. Here, she had use a piece of wet cloth, bent herself and clean. It was also some exercise since it required some running.

Suddenly, something caught her attention. While she was bringing back the material to the storage, she saw a frail cute girl being scowled by a guard in one of those "dead-end" hallways. He had a painful grip on her long pink hair. Karin did not grasp their conversation clearly, but it was still immoral to her eyes. The guard called the girl names, and was beating her up. Usually, Karin would have ignored it, and walked away, but this time, she stopped what she was doing - dropping everything on the floor - and went to aid the girl. Was it the indignation that she felt towards the guards that triggered her? Was it her true self resurfacing after a long force hibernation? Karin just walked towards the guard and give him a strong kick. He fell on the ground, surprised. She continued on beating him up, until he did not move. She stopped and took a grasp of the situation. She was in big trouble. Karin turned herself to the girl, who was shaking.

"You can't just leave him there," said a male voice behind then.

It scared the shit out of Karin, who jumped. She turned herself and notice four people: one girl and three guys. They were dressed like her, in a simple white and black kimono (A/N: Similar to the Academy's uniform). One of the guys, shorter in stature and total bishounen, was keeping a watch the only entrance to this hallway.

"But he's not dead. He's gonna snitch them out. It won't be confinement for them, it'll be worst," said another guy, who seemed oddly familiar.

"We got to get him out of here as well," said the girl.

"Damn, can't you act fast, I can hear a commotion," said the bishounen, staring at them with his dark grey eyes.

A guy, the tallest, raised his hands. "Bakudo #99 part 1 Kin" He binded the guard, then he turned his head to the girl. "Can you do it?"

The girl stared at him, and sighed. She leaned over the unconscious guard, and laid two fingers on his head. She closed her eyes, and mumbled. She rose, and sighed again. "Done."

"We got to shunpon our asses now," said the bishounen.

The tall guy looked at the pinkhaired girl, and held her in his arms bridal style. He, then, turned Karin, who had not said a word, since their appearance. He did not have to say a thing; Karin understood. The five and a half (A/N: the pink head is the guy's arms) shunponed the fastest they could.

Due to their lateness, they were taken away the priviledge of having supper. While everyone was eating, they were looking at them eat.

"What you did was admirable," said the tall guy. "I'm Isamu Katashi."

"Ku...Kurosaki Karin..." she replied.

Katashi smiled, and messed her hair. "Hayato, Shizuka, Ryo, meet Karin."

Shizuka, a girl with short light turquoise hair and dark blue eyes, smirked. Hayato, who angrily corrected Katashi by telling him that it was "Nobuyuki, not Hayato", crossed his arms, and stared at Karin. He was the bishounen with black hair tied in partly in a tiny ponytail while the rest was a diagonal fringe that hid an eyepatch. Ryo was oddly familiar with his dark messy blue hair that touched his shoulders, and his bad boy demeanor. He glanced at Karin, and acknowledge his presence somewhat coldly. Katashi had fairly long black hair that only a few strands were tied. His silver eyes were mesmerizing. He was like the leader of the little band of bravados.

"And, you little girl, what's your name?" he asked to the pink-haired, who was sitting by Karin's side.

"Megumi or Mii-chan," she whispered shyly cute.

"Karin, you saving Mii-chan today, was heroic. A proof of real strength and honor," Katashi said.

"It cost us our supper too," added grumpy Nobuyuki.

Shizuka pinched Nobuyuki's ear. "Yah, Nobuyuki Hayato, you could have left. Now, hush."

The scene made Karin smile. It had been a long time since she had smile. She had forgotten a lot about living ever since she entered this world. She felt alive again. That's when she realized that she was not so weak after all. She needed a moment like that to show her strength. Strength was not all about fighting, courage was a sort of strength.

As they were heading to their rooms, after the late evening training and nightly chores, Ryo placed a hand on Karin. It surprised her.

"You've changed since the kidnapping, Karin," he said, before walking to his room.

Karin realized what was odd about him. He was the "boy". 

* * *

**A/N**: So this begins a two-part of Karin, before the real action begins. Can you bear it a little? I'm sorry that it's so long and stuff. |: This will actually be important later. These five created characters are actually important for the story: Isamu Katashi, Takahiro Ryo, Akemi Shizuka (originally "Rei Akemi", then, "Rei Wakana", then, "Akemi Kanon", to finally "Akemi Shizuka"), Nobuyuki Hayato, and Sakurako Megumi.

*tsuyoi: "strong" in japanese.  
*bishounen: an angelic cute looking guy in anime |:  
*ohayo-gozaimasu: in japanese, the polite form of "good morning". can also be "ohayo" only


	6. 05: Shi e notatakai

Chapter 5  
Shi e notatakai (死への戦い)

A year had passed. Karin knew it, because she counted 365 days since her arrival to the temple. It had been a year since she had been treated like cattle for God knows what cause. She did not know her place in the bigger picture, bu she knew that someone had wanted all of them to learn how to fight and how this world work. She learned about the Shinigami. According to their teachers, they were the "enemy", though she did not believe it. Her brother was not her "enemy". Katashi, also, did not belive it. Ryo, however, did not believe, but thought that they were lacking. He could not believe the stories he would hear from his acquaintances, because if they were true, they would have been saved already.

On the 366th day, all the "slaves" were reunited in the courtyard. Their teacher was there. He was an old man with piercing eyes with such strength that you could not look at them.

"We will have the greatest of visits. You are now are now ready to served them as pawns for the _one_ true cause," he said. "You have this day off, make use of it well."

He left, leaving them confused. Then many rejoiced. It was their first day off. Their first break from this bad life they had lived. Karin remembered when they first arrived. The teacher had said that "only the strong survived, and only the strong shall be rewarded." When they had arrived, they were given better conditions: no more rags, better food and a real room. Karin tilted her head, and continued on thinking. Why did she thought of that out of the blue? She sighed, then was tackled.

"Karin~" said a cheerful voice that could only be Megumi's.

"What is it, Mii-chan?" she asked.

"What are you going to do today?" Megumi questioned.

"Train," Karin replied. It was the only think she could think of. That was what they had been drilled to do: clean and train.

Megumi pouted. Karin guessed that it was not the answer that she was expecting.

"Train, eh?" Katashi repeated, appearing from behind with an arm surrounding an annoyed Hayato. "Sounds like fun, if we used it our way."

"Nani?" shouted Hayato. "I don't want to train, forget me on that one."

"You could always use some training," Shizuka said. "Your poor Kido skills are being laughed at."

Hayato glared, and cursed in his breath. He could not really retorted, because it was the truth. It hurt even more, because Shizuka 'the Ace' was the one saying it.

"Ryo, what do you think?" asked Katashi to the silent one.

"Whatever," he simply replied. Katashi took it as a 'yes'.

"We could play a game that uses everything we've learned," Katashi said, thinking. "Some kind of hide-and-seek with a twist."

"That sounds fun!" Megumi beamed.

The leader chuckled. "It will go as followed. Five of us hide and one seeks. At the end of the countdown, the ones hiding have to find a way towards where the seeker counted. If the seeker catches you, you lose."

Hayato rolled his eyes. "How are we going to know where the seeker counted? So much stupidity."

"Well Hayato, we'll mark it," answered Katashi, glared at.

"Whaat do you mean by catch?" Karin asked.

Katashi smirked. "Using Bakudo #61 for example."

The others look at him strangely when he added "for example", which made him laugh.

"I'm the seeker," he said untying his hair. "I'll mark the place with my red ribbon. The place will be...this tree." He chose the cherry blossom that was in the left corner of the inner courtyard. "One more rule, only hakuda and hoho allowed. So use your head. I'll only use #61, 'kay?"

Before he even started to count, they all disappeared. He count down starting with thirty. It was enough time for them to find somewhere to hide.

***

"I don't understand why they dubbed you the 'Ace'," Hayato scoffed.

"Doesn't mean, I've lost in this game that I'm not," retorted Shizuka. "Besides," she turned her head to Katashi. "He never showed his full potential during training."

Katashi just smiled while tying his hair. Karin was still catching her breath. Not only did she had to outrun Katashi, she to outrun the guards. They weren't really allowed to run in the temple. It was a fun game. The usually collected Ryo admitted that he actually had fun.

"Hey, you guys," called Megumi. "Do you have a clue of who is coming?"

Karin shook her head and spaced out thinking about it.

"Got to be some high rank, someone leading these guards," answered Hayato.

***

The sun rose. The bell rang. Today was the day that _this_ figure would come. They were given a full white kimono to wear. That person must be really some top-notch, though Karin, while walking in line to this vast room. This vast room was one that she had never entered before. It was simple with a tatami in the middle. On one side there was the floor, where they were ordered to sit (A/N: more like the respectable on the knees position). To other side had cushions, one being larger and comfy.

They stay there in silence - or else you were hit - until they heard a gong. Everyone knew that it meant that the person had arrived. Moments later, the person entered, a woman. Everyone was awed by her graceful features: black hair that almost touched the ground, mysterious purple eyes, porcelain skin. She also had such lady-like manners, and hid her face behind a fan. She was a doll-like figure. Karin also thought that she looked a little Sadako-ish, which freaked her a little.

Slowly, she walked in the room, and went to sit on the large cushion. There was an awkward silence that she broke.

"Today, the strongest will be given life. Living is a rare reward," she started. It was one strange way to start. "You were given 365 days to become better, and an extra day for rest," she continued. Many feared what she had to say next. Her monotone, yet bewitching, voice was freezing their blood. "Today, you shall fight an opponent. The strongest shall be rewarded life, and the weakest, an honorable death."

It shocked everyone. Death? They were forced to fight. They had no choice. Karin knew that if she would not obey, she would be killed. That was just like when they had to walk the perilous journey in the cold. They were killed, if they did not walk. What was worse was that they had to be present in all battles. They had to witness their friends fight or die.

The first battle started. Each duelist had a choice of weapon. The two started, and they were even, until one of them used kido. He surprised his opponent who fell on the ground. The woman smiled at the one still standing, and ordered "Kill him." He reluctantly did. A part of the winner died. The woman asked him to come to her. He obeyed. She gave him her hand that he held. Then, she placed her free hand on his head. She whispered something to him, then told him to sit on one of the cushion by her side. After that, the second battle started.

Karin witnessed the dead falling, the seats filling, and her heart failing. She could not stand to watch this mess. Fight to death. It was just wrong. Yet, she had no choice. Her turn would come soon. It was heartbreaking to see Megumi killed her opponent. This innocent bright little girl had no choice. Tears fell on her face, because she did not want to. The cruel lady patted Megumi's head and said "do not waste your tears for the weak, but do cry of happiness for the life that was given to you." How dare she said that? Karin was profoundly disgusted.

"You there," the woman said, pointing Karin. "Approach. Your opponent will be...you there."

The time had come. Karin took a look at her opponent, a bucked guy almost twice as tall as her. That was insanity. She heard the woman say "fight", then she was sent all the way to the wall behind her. Such force. She stood back up, but failed to notice that her opponent had shunponed right in front of her. He held her by the neck, and started to suffocate her. Already the end, thought Karin. At first, she felt okay dying, but then she remembered that she had a family that she hoped to see again, and that all her friends had made it alive. Besides, after all this training, dying of suffocation was pretty sad. If she was going to die, she had to die with honor by leaving a good memory and fight behind.

Grasping to reality, she released her reiryoku. Her reiatsu was bright red. She held her opponent's wrists, and managed to move his hands from her neck. Then, she pushed him away a little. Karin could note the surprised expression of her opponent. She took advantage of the surprised effect to send him flying with strong spin high kick. He stood back up breathing loudly. Sorry pal, Karin thought, as she shunponed to his side. She jumped, took his head, and smash her knee in his face. He screamed of pain, and stumbled. He managed to catch Karin's arm, and threw her away. She lend on the wall again. This guy had amazing raw physical strength. She stood up, and saw him take a weapon, an axe. Now he was being totally serious. He charged towards her, but Karin easily dodged him. She was faster than him. She also took a weapon, a katana. She was going to end it. Like a bull, he charged on her again, and she dodged him again. She noticed what he was doing. There was going to have no third time. While she was thinking, he three his axe at her, and, thanks to her reflexes and years in the Kurosaki household, she dodged it. He had to shunpon to get the axe, and took the opportunity to charge. Karin jumped, then stabbed him with her katana in the right side of his chest. He screamed off pain, and took out the sword. He was furious. He was totally acting like a bull. He turned himself, and was about to charge, when Karin raised her palm towards him, closing it to a fist.

"Bakudo #63, Sajo Sabaku," Karin said.

Her opponent was tied in a light chain-like rope, and could no longer move. He fell on his knees powerless. Karin did not leave him the time to find a solution, and took her katana on the ground.

"Gomen," she whispered, before beheading him.

The fight was over. Karin felt extremely weak, bu proud that she managed to used a Bakudo spell of over level 60. It was an achievement. She had remembered guards using it on someone once.

The woman asked her to approached. Karin walked to her, and the woman looked at her in the eyes. "Why do you care for the weak? Why did you waste your time apologizing? What only matters is the strong. Your enemies will not care about you once they strike, so show no care." This 'advice' hurt Karin deeply. She wanted to say that she was not everyone, and she would do as she pleased. "Anyways, Mama, was pleased."

The last battle was over, and the woman stood up. She turned herself to her little puppets in front of her. Then she pointed six of them. Karin and her friends. She told them to follow her. They left the temple with the woman. Karin wondered what happened to the others who survived, but remained behind.

* * *

A/N: So there you have it, the last part. Things will start now. Promise. I'm not that good in writing fightig scenes, but I try /)-(\. As you can see, Karin became a fine Hakuda practitioner and a very skilled Kido user. Mama is like very important. I modeled her on 'Lady Eremiah' from a Fire Emblem game. 'Lady Eremiah' was a treating the orphans like trash and called them 'puppets' and trained them as merciless killers and all.

*shi e notatakai: "battle/fight to death" (Japanese)  
*nani: "what?" (Japanese)  
*gomen: "Sorry" (Japanese)


	7. 06: Yakusoku

A/N: Kubo-sama owns Bleach, not I. I own the MJ.

* * *

Chapter 6  
Yakusoku (約束)

"Hey Karin, it is me again. I don't know where to start. We are about to be 16 soon. It's the end of April now. You've been in coma for exactly one year. According to the machine next to you...I forgot the name...it says that you are still alive. Thank you for fighting for so long. I hope some day, you'll wake up...like I said earlier...I can see them now. It would have been fun to be with you and talked to the souls around us...but you are not here and I am alone. I miss you."

For the past year, Yuzu had visited her sister at the clinic. Her father told her she could dropped by any time if she felt lonely. If she was really taking to the extreme, she would be sleeping in the clinic, because that was how bad she felt lonely. Yuzu had wondered where her sister was now.

She left the clinic, and fell face to face with her big brother. He patted her head with a faint smile; she knew he was trying to reassure her.

***

Ichigo somewhat lost hope, but he still would search heavens and seas for a trace of his sister. After the encounter with the mysterious woman dubbed the 'Beauty of the Forest', the case became cold again. Kyoraku, however, did not lowered his guard, and kept a decent numbers of people around for defense.

The orangehead had nothing to do, so he decided to drop by the Seireitei. Urahara was a little against it, but let him leave anyway. It was near impossible to change Ichigo's mind when it was set.

Arrived there, Ichigo was greet by Renji and they started bickering over nothing. Rukia intervene between them by using a bit of force. Matsumoto laughed at the scene. She wished she could have stayed a little longer to tease them, but she heard her name being yelled by Hitsugaya. Madarame and Yumichika replaced her, and started to make fun of the trio in her place. Things were starting to go back to normal between them like the good old times.

***

In the offices of the 12th Division, the subordinates were at their places in front of their screens. They were monitoring and surveying like always. All of a sudden, one of the men stood up. He had found something weird. He continued to check the details, before gasping.

"Call the taicho! Call the taicho!" He was panicking.

It barely alarmed Kurotsuji Mayuri, who took his time to check what was going on. The man was about to show it, when it was too late, the system crashed. That surprised the head researcher, who tried to reinitiate the system, but failed. He sent a hell butterfly to the sotaicho. It was an emergency. It was pratically impossible to be able to bypass through the security system.

***

When he received the message from the 12th Division, Kyoraku told Nanao to issue an order of vigilance. He also ordered to double the numbers around the Seireitei. She did as told, wondering why. With one glance, she could tell that the sotaicho had a bad feeling about all of this.

Nanao was finishing to deliver her message, when she heard the emergency alarm ringing around the Seireitei. What in the world had happened?

***

Running aimlessly to figure what was going on, the quintet - Ichigo, Renji, Rukia, Madarame and Yumichika - fell on Shinji and Momo. It had been a while since Ichigo have not talked to the visored and captain of the 5th Division. They asked him if he had a single clue of what was going on, and he only replied that he had an assumption. The quintet resumed their run in quest of answers, and fell on Hitsugaya. Him too had only an assumption.

As they were talking, they heard a loud crash. They were about to run in the direction of the impact, when Rukia pointed the sky. She was not the only who noticed the apparition of figures in the sky. Many Shinigami on the roofs or on the ground noticed that, and started to talk about it. Those figures were masked and wore some kid of mix of typical kimonos and something else or a modified kimono.

A figure descended from this sky until it was close enough of the Shinigami and remained in the air.

"It's the Beauty of the Forest," unconsciously named Renji, which made the masked girl, laughed.

"Is that how I am called?" she flickered her hair. "I have a message for you, we are-"

She was not able to finish, because Ichigo had jumped and attacked her. She was able to dodged it, and pointed him with her finger.

"Bakudo #61, Rikujokoro," she said, binding Ichigo, then kicked him to the ground.

It confused the Shinigamis. How did she know how to use Kido if she was not one of them? Was she a traitor? A lot of questions were rising, which made her laughed. She was joined by other figures. They were all masked. Then, everyone felt some reiatsu that was easily equal to captains like Kenpachi.

"King," the beauty let out.

"Let me addressed them, Lunamaria," the figure from whom all the pressure was coming from.

She bowed her head, and gave him space.

Everyone's attention was on the man with the mask with a mane of feathers. The way contemplate his enemies was in a way that said "look at this peasants at my feet".

The captains from all divisions appeared under him.

"Oh." He stared at them. "It's an honor to have the captains right where they belong." He thought 'at my feet'.

To people like Byakuya it was painful for the pride. The man descend, and touched the ground. He was instantly joined by a woman - clearly with the mask and the long hair, she was a woman - and most likely a man.

"Oi, mister," Kyoraku started. "You must be the Jukyokage that, I was told, were a threat."

The woman hid her "mouth" with her fan to laugh. The sotaicho's eyes crossed with hers, she had bewitching eyes. He noticed that, unlike the other two, her face was partially hidden. The fan was making up for the bare part, and added to the mystery.

"Regina, you are distracting the men here," said, a third figure, who wore only black except for his golden and white full mask.

She glared at him for that remark. "My charm is a threat itself," she said reappearing next to the other figures in the skies.

"Now, now, are you going to remain silent forever?" asked Kyoraku. "Did my remark affected you?"

"Do you really think so?" He scoffed. "The name is Mascherti Jukyokage, the masked dwelling in the dark." An explosion was heard, which caught the shinigami by surprised. "I was just buying some time for fellows." He made a card appeared into his hand and through it on the ground. "Let me present myself, Kotei de Picche and by my side the Kokashu di Fiori. You met our Regina, Hime di Cuori." He shunponed in the air, and said loudly. "This is our revolution against authority. For what cause, for what purpose, that's for you to discover," he ended before disappearing.

***

Another full mask a bit imposing and elegant turned himself to the Regina. "We leave the Seireitei in your care," he said, leaving.

The Regina nodded to the other, the Chojo di Diamanti, and snapped her fingers. A legion of white masks appeared. They were somewhat the equivalent of the Onmitsukido in a sense. Their clothing was similar except for the facial area.

"Go on, my little puppets. Make our militare, proud," she said.

The Jack looked at the Regina in action. "Will you need us?" he asked.

"No, you may leave," she said.

He disappeared with ten other figures.

"Now we shall put into execution our promise," she proclaimed. "Our promise of coming back to you."

***

As they watched the figures falling from heaven, Ichigo recognized those masks. They were the ones who had kidnapped Karin, but more. That made him angry. He released himself from his prison. He was starting to get it, and he thought of the better and worst. Was he going to meet her again?

* * *

A/N: Yay, everything started to pick up! Hell yeah! There's a lot to explain here. The"pre-arc" stage came to an end here, and now it;s the "beginning" stage. I left on a semi-cliff-hanger here, lol. First I'm going to explain them words:

*yakusoku: promise (japanese)  
*taicho: captain (japanese)  
*sotaicho: commander-captain (japanese)  
*fukutaicho: lieutenant (japanese)  
*mascherti: masked (italian) [mascherti jokyokage: masked dwelling in the shadows]  
*kotei de picche: "kotei" emperor (japanese) "de picche" of spades (italian)  
*kokashu di fiori: "kokashu" duke (japanese) "di fiori" of clubs (italian)  
*hime di cuori: "hime" princess (japanese) "di cuori" of hearts (italian)  
*chojo di diamanti: "chojo" ace (japanese) "di diamanti" of diamonds (italian)  
*militare: military (italian)

If this chapter did not rise many questions, then I failed? Everything will be explained in due time. I can explain what was already told or easy to figure. This group are a group of rebels that can use the same powers as Shinigamis. Like the Arrancar have this Spanish in them, and the Quincy, German, they have the Italian, but mixed with Japanese. Japanese, being the Shinigami. It will be explained in due time.

The "reigning" figures are represented by cards from a normal western card game. Their titles are mixed with Italian and Japanese. From the highest to lowest that appeared.

Kotei de Picche (the leader) represented by the King of Spades.  
Chojo di Diamanti (To be revealed) represented by the Ace of Diamonds  
Hime di Cuori "Regina" (To be revealed) represented by the Queen of Hearts  
Kokashu di Fiori (To be revealed) represented by the Jack of Clubs.

Then there is the first not white mask that appeared before, who was dubbed "Beauty of the Forest" [wondering who started that kekeke not sure if I should say Kensei or Renji yet]. Her name is "Lunamaria", but it was not revealed what she is. She is strong enough to use Bakudo on Ichigo, and dodging his reckless attack (not stronger obviously).

Oh and did you noticed what Yuzu said about time? *winks* Ishisberryberryimp0rtant!

Part two of "Attack on Seireitei" (lol) in the next episode. I might drag it into four parts.


	8. 07: Kaigi

Chapter 7  
Kaigi (懐疑)

Alone on her throne, the skies, the Regina had snapped her fingers, and a myriad of white masked appeared. It was a part of her soldiers from the legion of the Militare. They were her little puppets that she had "gave birth" of after long domestication and training. They were merciless assassins that would die in honor on the battlefield. She watched them, attacking by surprised the Shinigamis. They surely must have not seen anything like them.

She remained there floating. She did not want to stain her kimono that she had customized to fit her body perfectly. It looked like a dress, but still had details of specific to kimonos. The Regina, her fan on her face, looked at her minions as they were doing their job perfectly. "Make them see a glimpse of our power." That was the order that the King had told her, before they left their domain hidden in the abyss. She was going to show them the power, the threat, that they had to fear.

***

Ichigo was aiming the remaining person in the air. Surely, she would be able to answer to his question. Surely, she would be able to tell him where was his sister that he has searched for so long. However, he could not reach that floating woman, since many of her soldiers were on the way. Why were there so many of them? He cut one, then ten would take its place. How many did she bring to assault the Seireitei, millions?

He did not notice one that was behind him, and was saved by Renji, who yelled at him, and ask him to be more serious.

Renji was totally surprised that this amount of souls were rebelling against them. Then he thought that there might be more to this. He shook his head. The battlefield was not a place to be lost in his thoughts. He already had a hard time dealing with his enemies. At a certain moment, he was fully surrounded by his opponents. He already had his shikai released (A/N: you know how Renji is always like the first one to release his shikai, lol), and the only way he good save himself was by using his bankai. he was about to, but his captain saved him with his Senbonzakura. He thanked him, and, like always, his captain just left. Sometimes, he wished that his captain showed more concern. Then again, he did have his ass saved. That was awareness and care.

***

Soi Fon could not believe it. A force that surpassed her Onmitsukido actually existed. She needed to train them more now. She could not let herself be defeated. She still acknowledge that she was surpassed, though. She took off her haori. They were incredibly fast, and experts in Hakudo.

***

Kensei with his co-lieutenants were clearing the way. From times to times, he would check on his youngest, Shuhei. The kid had grown a lot. And all this training for the Quincy war paid off as well. Shuhei, still, would not use his shikai until it was his last resort, though.

The ninth division's captain was joined by the third's, Rose, and his lieutenant, Kira.

Rose would glance at times at Kira, who was some sort of musical muse to him, when injured. (A/N: Sorry, but after he said that in the manga, I just...had to reference it. And in this fanfic, Izuru Kira is still alive B|) He released his shikai, when he noticed that his second was being overpowered by many opponents, and "aided" him. Izuru was thankful.

The two friends, Shuhei and Izuru, ended up together after being pushed by their enemies. Shuhei looked around him, and sighed. He had no choice. "Rape, Kazeshini" He made some space for both. Izuru smiled at his friend. The action gave Kira a sudden boost of strength, knowing how much Shuhei hated his zankupatou.

***

"Growl, Haineko," Matsumoto used her shikai to fight off her enemies. When she had a 'time off', she complained on how much work this is. She had not noticed that an enemy was sneaking onto her. Hitsugaya freezed him.

"Matsumoto!" He stared, annoyed.

"Ne, Taicho," she said with a big smile.

He sometimes wondered why his lieutenant could not cast this lazy bum side of her aside.

***

If there was one squad that was enjoying the moment, it was obviously squad 11, well minus their captain. Kenpachi wished that the strong ones remained in battle, but they had all left. He was particularly excited when he felt that waved of reiatsu earlier. As for Madarame and Yumichika, like any other member of the 11th, they were in nirvana.

***

The 4th Division had a lot to do. Unohana (A/N: Like I said in the disclaimer, Unohana was just critically injured, but she lived. B| she is like one of my favorites and her zankupatou in human is like freaking scary |: it says a lot about her real self) had a lot of injured people on Minazuki that she was healing with her seated officers. She also had to make sure that her subordinates were safe, while they were performing Kaido.

***

Rukia ran into Ichigo. He was being reckless, but she understood why. Only by the way he was fighting, she could tell that he wanted to get to the woman, and have answers. "Dance, Sode no Shirayuki" Her beautiful zantupakou showed all her beauty in her shikai.

"Ichigo," she called.

He turned his head, then looked down. He noticed the circle, and quickly escaped. A column of ice went up to the sky trapping a bunch of them.

Ichigo smiled at her, thankfully, and made his way towards the lady who had the luxury to float calmly on top of their heads.

***

The Regina was there making sure that all was going as planned, then she heard "Getsuga Tenshou" from beneath her. She barely moved away to dodge what could have been the end for her. Then, there he was, the infamous Substitute Shinigami.

"He appeared before me at last," she said her mouth hidden behind her fan.

Ichigo pointed his sword towards her. "Where is she?"

She faked not understanding what he said. "Where is she?" he repeated.

The Regina looked at him, and tilted her head. "Nani?"

Ichigo had not time for this fuckery, and decided to attack. Maybe she would answered through force. He leaped to her swinging one of his zanpakutou swords (A/N: Since it's after the Quincy war...he has the new and true version of his zanpakutou) to her head, but as it was to hit its destination, it was stopped. The force of impact pushed him away, but not the woman. What just happened.

The lady laughed, and snapped her fingers to motion her minions to stop. It drawn the Shinigami's attention as well. Ichigo did not understand, and attack again. Once again, he was stopped, and pushed away. It made the woman laughed even more.

"What is going on?" Ichigo dropped.

The Hime di Cuori stopped laughing, and looked at him seriously. "Didn't you want to see her?"

He did not understand, when suddenly he was hit by the back, and sent to the ground.

"Watashi wa jigoku no fuka-sa kara yobidasu (I call from the depths of hell) karera no joo ni tsukae rensa shi tamashi (the chained souls who serve their queen), i miei burloni (my jokers)," she invoked.

In front of her appeared five masked souls: a short turquoise haired girl, a long black haired guy, a blue haired guy, a short guy, and a pink haired girl. Right in front of Ichigo, was a girl with a checkered multi-colored mask. She was dressed in a white and red kimono that looked like the shinto priestesses' one. She had this black hair. From the holes for the eyes, Ichigo could see that her pupils were chrome colored, but deluded from any life.

"No way," he let out in disbelief.

The Regina laughed loudly. "They say that all hero's have a weakness, an Achilles' heels. Meet Kurosaki Karin, Ichigo, your beloved little sister." The lady shunponed next to the girl, and whispered. "Make Mama proud, my little puppet," she whispered.

The girl mechanically pointed the tip of her katana to her older brother. "Kongobaku." A ball of fire was sent towards his direction.

* * *

A/N: Told you that the six were important! There is a lot of explanation coming. Why the fuck those Karin mindlessly and deliberately attacks her brother? Just making sure Mama = Woman who came at the temple = Regina = Queen of Hearts. Oh and Karin performed the spell that Kuchiki Kouga in the Zanpakutou Tales filler used at some point against Byakuya. It's a fire Kudo spell.

*kaigi: disbelief, sceptism, doubt (japanese)  
*Regina's incantation: "Watashi wa jigoku no fuka-sa kara yobidasu (I call from the depths of hell) karera no joo ni tsukae rensa shi tamashi (the chained souls who serve their queen)" (japanese) "i miei burloni (my jokers)" (italian)

For the masks, I'm going to upload the images and all, because I'm lazy.

So, end of part 2...


	9. 08: Yoake

A/N: Kubo-sama owns Bleach, not I.

* * *

Chapter 8  
Yoake (夜明け)

Ichigo could not believe it. There in front of her was standing his sister. He literally froze when realized that. While he was still trying to understand, the young girl had fired at his direction a big ball of flames toward his direction. Rukia yelled his name, and instantly came back to reality. He was able to cut the ball into two just in time.

"Who are you?" he asked.

The girl looked at him with his emotionless eyes. "Kurosaki Karin, your opponent."

He wished she would stopped being scary like that. She was not his opponent, but his sister. She did not have for retorts, and attacked swinging her sword to him. He blocked, but did not strike back. The girl took advantaged of the situation, and striked again. He blocked with his other smaller sword. She let out a small 'ah', and took two steps away.

"Karin, snap out of it," said Ichigo.

It made the Regina laughed. "She cannot hear you. She is under my unbreakable spell," she warned him. "Better kill her, before she kills you." She snapped her fingers. "Mi buloni, attack. Mi militare, resume."

Upon hearing the snap of fingers, the six souls started to move. Karin looked at her opponent, and smiled. "It seems that I will be fighting someone of my league, eh?" she let out totally the way Karin would talk. Ichigo was not acknowledging that it was her fully consensual sister wanting to fight. Like the witch said, she was under a spell. He did not have the time to think that he was attacked again by Karin, she stroked with her katana that Ichigo block with his bigger sword. Karin then took her trump card out, earlier than she usually does, and stroked with a wakizashi. He did not noticed the smaller sword, and was touched. Ichigo pushed her back, and looked at the ugly wound, a stab between two ribs.

He looked at her, and she looked back.

"I was not being serious yet," Karin warned in battle stance.

He could only consider the worst now. For the first time, Ichigo did not know what to do, how to fight and how to save someone. It seemed that he had no choice, but to fight his sister. Maybe he could knock reason into her head, then again...

***

The five other souls separate themselves, and took various direction in search of a good opponent. Nobuyuki, leaped from roof to roof, killing some shingami in passage, until he noticed a little man fighting relatively well. (A/N: The way Nobuyuki Hayato thinks of Toshiro differs from mine) He slashed the shinigami in his passage, and a surviving Militare in his way. The gesture caught Hitsugaya's attention, but also shocked him.

"He was your man," Hitsugaya stated.

"So?" Nobuyuki replied. "Mama does not need weaklings at her service. Only the strong ones deserve to live."

Toshiro stared at the boy in front of him. His mask was quite interesting. It had a commodore hat added to it's designed. He looked like pirate with a carnival mask.

"Entertain me, taicho," ordered Nobuyuki.

Their swords clashed together, which resonated both in sound and in spiritual power. There was a wide grin on the boy's face. He had found his opponent of the day.

***

Landed on the top of the highest building, Ryo watched the barbaric scene in front of him. Countless of bloody fights, plies of dead and masses of injured, that was a breath-taking depiction of war. If he could, he would have stayed there forever, but an intruder deranged him.

"What's fun about watchin' it, when you can be part of it?" a voice asked from behind.

The blue-haired turned himself, and fell face to face with a bald man. A barbarian, thought Ryo.

"People like you don't understand the beauty that lies in life," Ryo said. "Sometimes it's worth it to just stop and watch."

"Yeah, right," Madarame rolled his eyes, and took out his sword.

Ryo stared at the sword, and smirk, while taking out a handmade cigarette (A/N: Shiba's sister was smoking so I'm just assuming that cigarettes exists in Soul Society). He lit it, then took his sword out.

"Guessin' that I don't have a choice," Ryo sighed. "I'll be done with you, before the end of my cig."

***

Megumi lost herself in the immensity of the Seireitei. She decided to take a stroll. It was not every day that she would be in there anyways. Then, she fell on this short girl. She was surprised to find a girl shorter than herself.

"Mii-chan wants to fight you~" she beamed as she jumped right in front of the female shinigami. Her eyes were on the girl's shikai. "Oh the pretty sword~. Nee-san, let's fight"

The girl who was in front of her was startled. Why such a girl would be in the battle front? Why was she in those 'six' great ones that the Regina invoked?

"So, Nee-san?" Megumi asked again.

She could not refused. Rukia was already in shikai form, though. Would the girl manage?

***

Unlike the others, the leader did not search for an opponent or vise versa. He was instead doing his best to inflict the most casualties to the enemy. Then, all of sudden, as he was about to slice in two an enemy, he was disturbed by someone who went between his victim and his sword. Katashi jumped back from a few meters, and looked at the party pooper, a redhead.

"I would have done the same, for a man of mine," Katashi bluntly admitted.

Then a female shinigami passed by his side. He pierced her in the heart with his nodachi (A/N: sword longer than a katana).

"I wonldn't lay a hand on a woman, however," retorted Renji.

Katashi stared at him and did not care. He jumped and shunponed away to another location, where he find more victims to kill. He was not able to kill the little unit he fell on, because the same redhead blocked him once again. He jumped back, than pointed his sword at Renji.

"I guess have no choice, but to pass through you, before the others," Katashi dropped.

***

The Girl. That was her title. She was formerly the Ace, until the leader showed his true colors. Even if she was second, she was still part of the best. She was that one female that made guys cry and feel emasculated. On her own, she had decimated a unit of unseated Shinigami that the Militare failed to destroy. Shizuka watched her opponent fall on his knees, then sliced his throat. They were ordered to kill, weren't they? There were still so many left. The Militare were maybe extremely good, but their number was less that the Shinigami present.

She started to move again. Her slow pace had made her an "easy target" to Shinigami who had just arrived. That slow pace was just her lazying, not her real one. One of them tried to jump her, the moment he leaped, his head met the tip of her blade. It scared the shit of the others who ran away. Shizuka eyed them.

"Ye lord! Mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws," she recited the full incantation her palm raised at their direction. "Hado #33. Sokatsui"

Usually this technique is only directed towards one particular, but because they were all close, and that she mainly targeted the middle man of the escaping group, she was able to damage them all, killing or injuring them in the process.

The Girl. She deserved that title. Shizuka resumed her slow pace stroll, when she noticed a man close. His energy was high. She noticed her insignia. A lieutenant. Quick stepping to him, she managed to put her katana to his neck from behind. He had seen it coming from miles away, and was able to break free.

"I'm used to the sneaky bastard attack," he voiced. He took a look at the other, and was surprised that it was a girl.

The comment was a funny one. "Allow me, fight you head on, then...?"

"The name is Hisagi Shuhei," he said. He never really fought with a woman - Mashiro did not count -, but that one had him on her radar. Witnessing what she could do, he could not back out anymore.

***

The Regina was a happy mother. Her puppets had done more than enough damaged to weaken considerably their forces. For a moment, she thought of calling it a day, but seeing her six favorites in their battles, she decided to let them play a little longer.

"It is the awakening. It is the dawn of an era. Embrace the new one."

* * *

A/N: I guess it safe to say that 4 parts or more will be needed. I love how Regina is just floating there giggly and her subordinates dying underneath her.

*buloni: praksters/jokers (italian) "bulone" in singular.

So recap on the fights scenes that should be coming or cut short.

- Main: Ichigo vs Karin (I actually feel bad.)  
- Hayato vs Hitsugaya (Battles of the Shorties)  
- Ryo vs Madarame  
- Katashi vs Renji  
- Megumi vs Rukia (this makes me feel like Rukia vs that Xcution girl /memory blank/ crackier)  
- Shuhei vs Shizuka


	10. 09: Tasogare

Chapter 9  
Tasogare (黄昏)

The young captain stared at his opponent. They were probably around the same age, and they had about the same stature. It was a rare occasion for the tiny captain.

"So you value the strong, and step on the weak," Hitsugaya said, as he was getting to fight.

The boy laughed madly, then stared back at Toshiro with same coldness. "The weak flies are always devour by the strong. It's the food chain, don't cha get it."

Both were in battle stance contemplating the other. Then, at the same time, they launched. Their katana clashed, and they started to get serious. For a moment, they were even. There was not one in a full-time defensive mode. Hitsugaya was impressed that he was evenly matched. That meant that the only way he could win this fight was by wits. They swung their swords with vigor, and strength.

As for Hayato, he did not like it. They were not moving. He needed to find a way to get the upper hand. Revealing his shikai, he thought, no t was too soon. There was the other solution, but he hated that cowardly solution. Using Kido in the a battle was for the weak. That's what he thought. Besides, he loved the feeling of slashing, shredding, cutting and impaling his enemy. It made him happy. He needed to find the moment to strike. All of a sudden, he almost got touch by the other's blade. Was he opened?

Yes, he was. The moment Hitsugaya noticed that Nobuyuki was paying less attention and thinking to much, he found the opportunity to shift the tables. However his opponent had good reflexes, and he avoided the blow. Hayato jumped away, and blinked. He should not lower his guard down. That's when he saw how he could hit.

"Taicho," Nobuyuki said. "That was a close one."

Hitsugaya shunponed behind him, and was about to strike, when he was the one striked. Hayato saw through him, and was able to inflict him a minor injury, cut on the his arm. Hitsugaya noticed that Nobuyuki was grinning. How did he managed?

"Attacking as soon as the opponent lowers his guard," the boy pointed out. "Basic. Typical."

Just like Hitsugaya thought; it was all about the wits. Viewing him as a fun fighter like the members of the 11th, Toshiro had underestimate the other a little.

"Basic, eh?" said Toshiro, staring at the enemy's stained katana.

"You won't get to me with those petty attacks," Hayato exclaimed. "En garde!"

Hayato launched on the other, and they resumed the battle. It was a game of wits, the slyest was going to be the winner. However, Hayato did not have to fully think, so he had to improvise. As the battle extended, he had no choice. He broke the attack spree, and sighed.

"I can't believe it," he muttered. "It is the power of a captain, I believe."

Hitsugaya stopped, and wondered what he was referring to to.

The boy shove his sword into the ground. "I guess that, I have to go into this mode." He repressed a sigh. "Overcloud, Tsukiyomi [Kumoraseru, Tsukiyomi]."

The captain's eyes widened a little, showing his surprise. It made the boy laughed, as he revealed his shikai.

"Still surprised by non-Shinigami to be able to use all your tricks?" Hayato scoffed.

His shikai was similar to a cutlass, but the blade was a longer, little more croissant shape, and large. One side of the blade was silver, and the other side was chrome. The hilt was like any cutlass, which covered the top of his hand, was golden. He held his blade with his left hand.

"Time to get serious capt'," he said as he attacked Toshiro with strength.

Hitsugaya noted that the other was fighting with ever more vigor. Because he could not match up with the powerful blows, he had become more defensive. Was it his shikai's special ability?, thought Toshiro. He did not think so.

Nobuyuki started to feel bored. It seemed that the captain was no longer the same by changing strategy. Perhaps he was trying to find a breakthrough. That was not going to happen. At every blow, he would add a bit more strength. The captain could maybe block them, but this would change soon. He did not reveal his shikai for the fun of it.

"Taicho," he called. "Didn't I just say, to get serious? If you can't level up, than I'll force you to ya savvy?" It seem he had to use his shikai ability. He held his cutlass in front of him, only showing the chrome part. "Shingestu."

Hitsugaya looked everywhere. The boy had disappeared from his sight.

"Invisibility." Hitsugaya was impressed, but did not show it.

Hayato explained. "It's just me playing with your eyes. Tsukiyomi is the Moon god. Just like the new moon, I'm deceiving you by making you think that I'm not there." He laughed. "Will that make you get serious now? Not that you can do anything now. It was a game of wits, and you failed, taicho."

Mockery was going to get him nowhere. Hitsugaya just stayed there, and waited. He could not use his hearing, because of all the commotion surrounding him. They were not the only one fighting in the Seireitei. He had to find a new way to see. All of sudden, he was struck from behind. Hayato left a nasty scar on his back. The boy attacked him again, leaving another laceration on his back. He heard the boy's signature laughter behind him.

"My treasure has been marked. That will be were I stab," Hayato warned.

So, the boy had made an 'x' on his back. Hitsugaya had to think fast. He was in complete disadvantage here. Then he had a idea.

"Sit upon the frozen heavens," Hitsugaya started to Nobuyuki's delight. "Hyorinmaru." Now both them were in shikai. He had to act fast, so he did not lose time to use its ability. "Tenso Jurin." Controlling the weather, Toshiro decided to use snow as a way to see. He was not sure if it was going to work, but he still give it a shot. It was snowing in near storm force. He looked around him, and he saw 'him'. Where Hayato was standing, some snow was remained in the "air". Hitsugaya shunponed at that direction, and stabbed. It shocked Nobuyuki, who moved away. Injured, he reappeared. He had this grin on his face.

"I see," Hayato said, covering his wound. "You outwitted me, taicho."

He was about to strike, when he was called back. That pissed him off, but he had no choice, but to obey. Anyways, if the fight was to continue, that stab in the lower abdomen would have fail him. Hitsugaya was not going to let him run away, so he substitute his place with one of the Militare near him as soon as the captain striked. 

* * *

A/N: This concludes fight uno~ with Hayato-chan [character hits his creator]. It is somewhat a "draw", but it would have been a loss for Nobu'. (Never underestimate Hitsugaya, bro! Then again, it was a nice fight.)

*tasogare: twilight

Let's talk about Nobu' (/Gin magically appears for a Mascherti Jukyokage Encyclopedia lol)

Nobuyuki Hayato, the pirate: [**link**: private/60370154488/tumblr_msnwrhSGvM1shbskd]


	11. 10: Shin

A/N: Kubo-sama owns Bleach~ I own Mii-chan ; uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu ;

* * *

Chapter 10  
Shin (真)

She jumped in the air, and struck her opponent with a graceful kick. Bouncing around, she was being unpredictable to other, who was being beaten by someone who had only been using hakuda.

"Nee-chan~," Megumi called.

Rukia stood up difficultly using her katana for support. She had not been able to touch the pinkhaired who seemed like taunting her more than anything. She felt like she was being played with more than anything. Her first impressions were shattered. The cute girl was nothing near frail, and certainly had her place in this higher class of the so-called Militare. As she watched and analyzed the other, she noticed that she seemed like performing a mix of dancing and martial arts. She never had seen that before. Rukia, also, noticed that the girl had never shown her weapon.

The short noble did not have time to recuperate that she was sent waltzing to the other side. She lifted head, and saw Megumi on one foot and her other leg raised. The pinkhead slammed her leg to the ground, and a wave formed creating an earthquake. The buildings surrounding collapsed. Rukia managed to jump away to avoid the impact. In the air, she noticed that Megumi was searching for her with her eyes, she took the opportunity to use Kido.

"Carriage of thunder, bridge of a spinning wheel. With light, divide this into six!" She invoked. "Bakudo #61. Rikujokoro."

Megumi was restrained by her opponent who took good advantage of the situation. Rukia landed in front of her and used Sode no Shirayuki.

"It is over now," Rukia said. "Some no mai, Tsukishiro."

Megumi looked at the circle forming under her. She murmured a few words, before the column of ices 'trapped' her. Rukia, after making sure that Megumi was trapped in, turned and walked away. She stopped midway, because the way the column shattered did not sound like it normally did. Rukia turned herself, and noticed a fading barrier surrounding Megumi.

"Impossible."

The pinkhead lifted her head, and shook it. She, then, broke free from the Bakudo attack.

"No, Nee-chan~" Megumi replied softly. "I, maybe, the weakest in zanjutsu, hoho and kido in our squad, but I excel in hakuda and kido barriers," she giggled at the paradox. "Nee-chan is good." But she had to do better if she wanted to beat Megumi.

Megumi twirled gracefully, and shunponed to Rukia's side. She shifted on her hand, and hit Rukia in a windmill kick. Kuchiki flew, and hit a still standing wall. She did not miss her.

Replaying the girl's speech, she understood that she had to attack the weak points. She had to use her speed and her swordmanship. Maybe she had a chance, but Rukia first had to pierce in the girl's solid hakuda. She had to prevent her from moving. There was a way she could immobolize the other, but first, she had to keep her distance. She started to run away. Megumi noticed that girl fleeing, and started to pursue her. Rukia started to use shunpon, which made Megumi's pursuit harder.

"Nee-chan~, Nee-chan~, wait up," she screamed.

Megumi lost sight of the girl, who turned at a corner. She turned as well, but met a dead-end. Megumi decided to go back on her tracks. She turned herself, and fell on the Rukia who stab the ground.

"Juhaku"

Megumi could not moved anymore. She noticed that she was starting to freeze, which was bad. She was too late to create a barrier.

"...I have to...I guess..." she let out. Before her hands, started to freeze, she took her wakizashi out of its shelt. "Heaven's Grace, Ame-no-Uzume. [Ten'nomegumi, Ame-no-Uzume]."

The release generated a considerable amount of vapor. If only the girl knew that the moist was favorable to Rukia, them again, it might favorable to her too, thought Rukia. When the thick cloud of vapor evaporated, Megumi revealed her shikai. She looked like a cute doll in her lolita kimono, her pink half mask, but with her shikai, Megumi look different. Her aura was different. She held a weapon that resembled wind and fire wheels. She had one in each hand. Their hilt was red. Both wheels were joined by a long and medium-large silk ribbon (A/N: similar to the one used for dancing) that degraded from purple to pink to orange to yellow like the color of sky at dawn. Megumi twirled on one foot, which made breeze of air. It was graceful. Her face expression was more lady-like.

"Ame-no-Uzume, goddess of dawn, mirth and revelry," she presented, her shikai. "Her comedic dance made the goddess Amaterasu curious, and she left her cave." She smiled. "It has been a while since I haven't dance with Uzume." She pointed the tip of the wheel in her right hand to the ground, and the tip of the one in her left hand to the sky. Then, she was spining on the tip of her right foot, making the cloth swirling and surround her. "Kyokujitsu [Rising sun]." A red circle of fire surrounded Rukia. She jumped away, fearing what was going to happen. Similar to her Tsukishiro, a column of fire rose from the ground. It left the Shinigami dumbfounded.

When she jumped, she diverted her attention from Megumi. The Shinigami did not have time to see that the pinkhead was right next to her. The hakuda expert sent Rukia to the ground with a strong kick. Rukia hardly managed to stand up. Megumi slowly descended to the ground.

"It is over now," She said.

Rukia looked at her puzzled. She barely could moved, because of all those powerful hits that broke a few bones.

Megumi did a beautiful aerial (A/N: cartwheel with no hands), and, while she was still in the air, she whispered "Asamoya [Morning mist/fog]" The air became damp, and a thick fog clouded the area. Rukia could not see the other girl.

"If they find on time, you are luck. If they find you late, I'm sorry," she heard Megumi say softly, before being stabbed repeatedly with the wheels.

The Shinigami fell, and the fog dispersed. Megumi made her shikai disappear, and hid the wakizashi.

"Gomenasai, Nee-chan~"

* * *

A/N: This is how it ends. I don't know. It is my first time not making Rukia win a fight. I just used the flaws that I see in Sode no Shirayuki against her. /)-(\ It was supposed to be the shortest of fights :/ Anyways, Rukia always learns from her mistakes, then, owns her enemies (well, in the Bount arc...not so much)

*shin: "pure, genuine, true" in japanese.

Now let's talk about cutiepie over there.

Sakurako Megumi, the dancer **[link:** private/60371184483/tumblr_msnxi4XljC1shbskd]


	12. 11: Ikuji, Hibi, Chi

A/N: Kubo-sama owns Bleach. I get to create OCs for fanfiction purposes.

Unlike the other two chapters, this one will not feature on one battle. It's not like I'm lazy, but there's an clear reason. Also, I felt like I was dragging this part of the story too much with a bit of a long battle that is cut in too many episodes (/eyes Naruto and Bleach, because sometimes...)

* * *

Chapter 11  
Ikuji (意気地), Hibi (ひび), Chi (血)

All started, because him butting into Katashi's fights to save his comrades. It annoyed the the leader greatly. He had no choice, but to aside his plan of increasing the casualties to fight the 6th Division's redhead lieutenant. They stood there doing nothing, but waiting. Katashi did not know why the other was not moving, he remained there to wait for the first blow. It was game of patience. Katashi broke the silence, to ask a simple question.

"What are you proud of?"

Renji was shaken by the question and started to think about it.

"I am a leader to my friends. I protect them when I can. I respect my duties. I obey my superiors," Katashi said. "I should be very proud of myself, do I?"

Renji had the same view.

"I wield Hachiman, the war-god. For him, I should be proud of how I have become the undefeated warrior that I am," he continued. "He has a point." Katashi looked at Renji and his insignia. "I heard that the 6th Division's captain values pride. As his lieutenant, you must be the same as well."

"That's right," Renji replied.

"Well then, we shall fight and protect our honor. Our pride is on the line," said Katashi. He did not give time to Renji to answer or switch to battle stance. He shunpo towards his opponent his indexes lifted "Hado #4. Byakurai". Renji almost stumbled. Some blood was swirling from his mouth. That was one hell of a way to start.

***

Shuhei and Shizuka were delivering blow with tremendous force. It caught the attention of a few members of the 9th who were near. It had been a while since the their lieutenant was serious in a fight. What was strange about the fight is that none of them were releasing their shikai. The Shinigamis knew that Shuhei hated his; therefore, he preferred using his sealed zanpakutou until he had no choice. Why was the girl not releasing hers?

After receiving a counter-blow from the Shinigami, Shizuka had to break away. She contemplated him for a moment, trying to figure out how she could piece his defense. He was a stunning sword wielder, and so was she. Hisagi closed the gap a little between them, but did not attack. His eyes were on her, and he was not oving an inch. Even after minutes of sparring, he was showing no sign of tiredness. He had a perfect stance.

"Do you fear your power?" asked Hisagi, breakng the silence.

She arched an eyebrow, because she wondered what he meant by that.

Shuhei noticed the change in her expression, and quoted his former captain. "He who does not fear the sword he holds is not worthy of holding a sword," he quoted. "That's how I was taught."

Upon hearing this, Shizuka smiled. He was right. She nodded, and wondered what he feared of his sword. She knew what she feared from hers. Inazami, the goddess of creation and death. What was not to fear from a sword designated for murder. The girl was only gong to resort to it the moment she realized that she was no match with the lieutenant.

Hisagi noted that her expression changed again. She was acknowledging and understanding what he meant. They were now equal in a sense. He waited there, staring at her, and, she decided to strike again. The fight was going to be a long one.

***

"You little..." Ikkaku was gradually becoming irritated by the boy he chose to fight. He may had a lot of reiatsu leaking from him and he may seemed like a good sport to play with, the boy was just avoiding the hits without counter-attacking. What was the purpose of even fighting him. What was worst was the boy was mocking him. He had this shameless grin on his face as he was was avoiding the Shinigami's attacks fairly easily.

"Are you going to start fighting or what !?" fumed Madarame, totally on the verge of losing his shit.

Ryo eyed him icily, and sighed. "I don't have time nor energy to spare with barbarians," he answered.

His katana was still sheathed. His arms were crossed. His cigarette about to be done. His opponent was pissed off. Ryo wanted to laugh, because of the stupidity of the situation. He should be serious, so he can go back to what he was doing. That was a good idea. Finally, he blocked his enemy's blow, while taking his katana. It made Madarame grin.

"Don't get me wrong, barbarian," Ryo said. "I don't want to fight, I want my peace back."

Madarame laughed. The kid had jokes. It was not like he could easily toss him away.

Upon hearing the other's laughter, Ryo knew that he was not taken seriously. It made him smirk as he released his shikai. "Send your deluge, Susanoo. [Dai kozuii o okuru, Susanoo]," he commanded. His blade became bigger morphing with what resembled a revolver.

Ikkaku looked at the boy's shikai, and burst of laughter. "So that's supposed to send a deluge, eh?" He mocked.

Ryo's smirk was wider and cheekier. He pointed it towards the Shinigami. "Hasta la vista." His opponent was perfectly in bull's-eye. Ryo did not give him the time to react. "Hosui ju [Water cannon]" Madarame was caught by surprise, when he was sent flying away. Ryo had fired a pressurized water jet directly on his target. Nothing that would successively kill him or anything.

While the other was nowhere near, the blue-haired took quickly advantage of the situation. He left his spot, and hid his reiatsu. He had no time for all this fuckery.

***

His opponent was top class. The way he fought was worthy of a captain. Renji was starting to feel powerless, but he was not backing down in despair. Like the other's said, their pride was on the line. After all the training he received, he could not afford to lose. Since he was the 6th Division's lieutenant, he could not afford to lose at all.

Katashi acknowledge his enemy's determination. That was how a warrior should be. It was only that the other's weapon, Zabimaru, was becoming easy to read. It could extend as it could contract. It could go in various directions, but not that randomly. His opponent was also solely relying on it. Perhaps was he not that good in Kido. He had one hell of a strength, though. That was probably what was keeping him going. Katashi was still in sealed form. Against Zabimaru, his Nodachi was a bit of a problem. It was too long. He could give powerful blows, but they were slow. Unlike Renji, Katashi needed to rely on other techniques. Shunpo was not enough.

Closing on Katashi, Renji striked him with a contracted Zabimaru. Katashi was able to partially dodge the critical hit, but still had cut on the side of his right thigh. The redhead had realized that the other's weapon was not the best for quick effective close range attacks.

Katashi backed away, leaving a distance between them. He had to act quick. He was too far to hit the other with his weapon, but in a good range for any kido spells. "Hado #31, Shakkaho." Renji could easily dodge that one, and jumped. "Hado #32, Okasen," quickly invoked Katashi. It was a hit, and Renji fell on the ground. The first spell was only trick that the other fell for, thankfully. While the other was on the ground, he grasped the occassion. He was about to hit him with a direct hit, when it was blocked. There was wind surrounding them, a tornado. When it cleared away, Katashi noticed that he hit some kind of wood.

"Hihio Zabimaru" Renji knew he would not have the time to stand up, and block the other's hit, so released his bankai. The other stepped away. He must have understood the situation.

Fighting a bankai still in sealed form was insanity. Especially a moving one like the lieutnant's. Katashi understood his position. It was not longer a sparring match; it was the real deal. His opponent was now going all in. He had no choice, but to step his game up.

"I never thought that someone would, one day, force me into this kind of situation," Katashi said with a smile. "Shed blood, Hachiman." The nodachi turned to into a big double-headed axe. On each blade, there was intricate designs (A/N: Smiliar to Celtic patterns). The axe was chained to Katashi's right wrist. The weapon was still not the best to fight Zabimaru, but it was able to shield Katashi from an unexpected attack from the lieutnant. The snake's head went straight towards him. Katashi thought it was over, when the snake went back to its initial place behind the redhead. He heard Renji say, "Hikotsu Taiho", and red beam of light was fired. Katashi used his weapon as a shield again. He was able to divert its trajectory, but the force of the attack made him fall.

No matter, what he was doing, Renji noticed that his opponent was able to block or dodge. He needed to find a way to strike his opponent by bypassing his opponent's solid defense.

Shizuka got distracted for a second, and almost injured herself. She took a few steps back, and looked to her opponent. His stare was on her. It was intimidating and serious. Just by looking to his eyes, she knew that Hisagi Shuhei would kill her if he had to. Shizuka also noted that she was starting to feel tired, a feeling that she had not felt in age. Her breathing was heavy, but still steady. Thankfully he was to; she knew that because his blows were less stronger. She knew that she had to finish within the next minutes and attacks. If she used her shikai, Shuhei would most likely use his. Also, in shikai form, her zanpakutou would leech some energy. It was a gamble to take.

"Death upon them," she said. "Inazami."

The katana turned into a scythe with six colorless gems on its blade. Then, like it would always do, it leech energy from her in the most painful way, her right arm's flesh and skin disappeared. Her bones had turned into some solid and light-weight kind of metal. That was her creepy shikai. She dhad yet to understand how it was a part of her soul; all she knew was that her specialty was assassinating her enemies.

Kazeshini has a sister now, thought Hisagi. If the girl was revealing her shikai, she was most likely desperate to end the battle. Maybe it was the effective way. He shunponed to her, and attempted to stab her, when she held his weapon with her inhuman arm. She pushed him away, and put some distance between them. Her arm was a weapon itself.

She touched the ground with her humanoid arm. "Munashi [void, lifeless]" The ground around her was began to decay. Hisagi stared at the ground, and noticed it. He leaped in the air to avoid it. Her weapon had a deep connection with death, you did not have to be a genius to figure that one out. The very release command was related to death. He had to stay in a distance from her. Too close, she could touch him with her hand. Medium range, she could attack him with her scythe. As much as he hated it, he had to release it, he had to become the grim reaper.

"Reap," he commanded. "Kazeshini."

Shizuka examined his shikai. The gamble was not on her favor after all. She shunponed towards him, and swinged her scythe, and he blocked it. He could use his weapon by holding the handles or the chains; therefore, he was able to cover a lot of ground. She could always go back to sealed form. In both situations, her success rate were minimal. She was lost in her trail of thoughts that she did not notice that one of Shuhei's scythe were close by. It was too late for her to dodge it. She managed to avoid the lethal blow, but it hit the right side of her mask. It cracked, then half of it fell. As it shattered, the smokes started to come out, and she began to scream of pain.

***

As Katashi was about to attack Renji, he stopped right there. He heard a scream from afar, and he could tell who it is. He had to save his comrade, and he did not know if anyone was near to help her out. One last attack to finish this round, and suspend there battle. Renji was remaining still, surrounded by his bankai; therefore, Katashi could not directly attack him. He moved his hand towards the redhead's place, and whispered a few words. Soon, the other was surrounded by a barrier.

"I'm sorry," he apologized. "I'm needed elsewhere."

***

Ryo, on top of a new-found roof, was watching the other battles like before. Then, he remembered his mission. Repressing a sigh, the young man went towards the Academy's direction. There were some Militare there causing trouble. Some students had died, but many were fighting valiantly. He went to retrieve the object, he was ordered to steal, without being seen. The students were too occupied to notice him.

He left the Academy without a trace. All of a sudden, he heard the scream. He knew what he meant. He had a similar experience prior to this sudden invasion.

***

Her pain was never ending. She screamed and she screamed, which intrigued Shuhei more than anything. Why the sudden destruction of a mask would inflict such pain? He did not ponder on the question, and attacked. His attack was block by some guy with an axe who appeared in front of her. Another guy, a blue-haired, appeared seconds after. Three on One, thought Hisagi. What happened next surprised him. The axeman knocked out the girl, and the blue-haired caught her, before she fell.

"Gomen," said Ryo. "This quarrel will be for another time." He quickly shuponned away, disappearing with Shizuka.

Katashi, who's zanpakutou returned to its sealed state on his back, followed his comrades. Shuhei stayed there for a moment. That was something that was worth reporting. He, then, left to help out other Shinigamis in need.

-  
A/N: It looked better in my head. |: I'm not really satisfied by it all. Crappy chapter /)-(\ So, all the mysteries lie in the enigma of the mask and more. Nothing much to say. Shizuka is usually better, she's the level of a lieutenant (saying this like that makes me think of Findor C). Katashi is captain level, so he did achieve bankai. He just have so much strength that shikai is not that necessary, so bankai is even less.

What else is there to mention...there's more to the invasion (Ryo stole something)...

*ikuji: japanese word for "pride, guts, ego, amour-propre, self-respect"  
*hibi: japanese word for "flaw, fissure, crack  
*chi: japanese word for "blood".

Let's talk about the three, Ryo, the prince, Shizuka, the fair, Katashi, the leader.

**Akemi Shizuka**: [**link:** private/60372050772/tumblr_msny46UHoN1shbskd]  
**Takahiro Ryo**: [**link:** private/60372506633/tumblr_msnyfsofnY1shbskd]  
**Isamu Katashi**: [**link:** private/60373117632/tumblr_msnyv7mSZp1shbskd]

Last chapter of the "invasion" arc featuring the Kurosaki siblings.


	13. 12: Kisei

A/N: Kubo-sama owns Bleach, not me.

* * *

Chapter 11  
Kisei (祈誓)

"To kill or to be killed," voiced dramatically the Queen of Hearts. "That is the question."

Karin was attacking with her daisho - her katana and her wakizashi - while Ichigo was defending. No matter how much Ichigo pleaded Karin to stop, she would not listen. Karin had become this fine young woman over the past year. She was a few inch taller, she had a bit more forms, she was nothing like the young tomboy soccer player she used to be. Her hair was even longuer. It hurt that ichigo could not witness her growth. He had already missed so much over the years. He thought things would have changed now that the war was over.

They clashed swords again, and Ichigo grasped the opportunity to talk again.

"Karin," he tried. "Don't you recognize me? I'm your brother, Karin. It's Ichi-nii."

The girl stared at him with those lifeless eyes of hers, and point a finger at him. "Hado #1, Sho." He was pushed back a few feet away.

"Talking is pointless," the Regina said. "As long as she under my spell, there's nothing you can do, Kurosaki Ichigo."

Ichigo glared at the woman, and attempted to attack her, but Karin was blocking the way. If he wanted to go for his primary target, he had to take care of his sister. He had no choice. In the end, he did not take it. There was maybe some other way. They got to be an other way, he thought.

His sister had one of her swords in front of her. "The battlefield is a not a place to think." He eyed her wondering what she was going to do. "Hado #32, Okasen." A yellow beam was directed towards him. He blocked it with his sword. The impact made him slide of a couple of feet.

He looked at her again. Her zanpakutou was still in front of her. She had an eye of his every move. He needed to use a different approach. Maybe speed was the solution. That was not his typical approach, but he was not going to injure her. He wanted to bring her back home safetly. Then again, he only needed her to bring her back alive by any mean.

"You give me no choice," he said as he started to gather his spiritual energy.

"Only the strong survive in this cold world," said Karin looking down on him. She could see his reiatsu. He was surrounded by light blue aura. "Oh," she let out. It seems that the other man who claimed to be her was to take things to the next level. She did the same, and soon was surrounded by a red aura, but gather spiritual energy was not the only thing she did. "Gleam, Amaterasu, [Hikari, Amaterasu]." She revealed her shikai. There was not much change except for her hair that, from the roots to the tip, when to white to black; and her wakizashi was now a katana.

"Brace yourself, Karin," warned Ichigo, who saw her going to shikai. What did they have done to her?

"You should be saying that to yourself," she retorted.

"Getsuga Tensho."

It must have been a technique that ran into the family, because both unleashed the attack at the same time. For Ichigo, it was the only way to pass through Karin. He thought that she was only going to be injured, since he performed this attack in shikai. For Karin, however, it was only a decoy. She was in the air, right on top of her brother. He lifted his head, and saw her. His eyes widen, because she had a bow in her hands.

"Shinku Dageki [Crimson Blow]," she said, firing a red arrow similar to Uryu's arrows.

"Nani." Ichigo rolled over, dodging the attack. He cursed his Quincy lineage. A lot of undesired things were running in the family.

She landed right behind Ichigo, who turned himself. Her bow had turned into two katanas again. He hoped that she did not have other surprises.

"You will end up dead by half-_assing_ your attacks," she reprimanded. For a moment, her brother thought it was er real self talking, but her eyes were still lifeless.

***

The Regina was amused by the family battle. It was quite a spectacle. The hero of the Seireitei reduced into a powerless state. All of a sudden, three of her puppets appeared by her side. She turned her head, and noticed Shizuka's face. Already, she thought. Before anyone could find out what was really going on, she snapped her fingers. It was time to retreat.

"My, my," she whispered. "Things were getting interesting."

She pointed her palm towards Ichigo.

"Sadly, I have to put this fight on hold," she muttered. "Hado #31, Shakkaho." The Regina had faith that he would dodge the simple spell.

***

Ichigo noticed a red beam coming towards it and moved. Then, he turned his head towards his opponent, but she was longer there. He looked up, and noticed that she was fleeing. There was no way he was going to let her leave. He was so close. He had found her at last - more like she had found him.

"Karin!" he yelled.

The girl did not turn herself. He did not notice the Regina, who shunponed by his side.

"You'll meet again soon enough," she said, before whispering "Jinsei hiru."

Ichigo started to fall. All his energy was gone. As he fell, the distance between his sister and him grew. He tried to reach a hand towards her. His eyes were slowly becoming heavy. His surrounding became blurry. He crashed to the ground.

***

It is in the 4th Division's barracks that Kurosaki regained consciousness. By his side was Rukia. There was no sign of Karin. He failed once more. That was the most painful moment of his life. Not only was she there, he had to fight her. On top of that, he failed to save her. He could not hold back his tears of frustration. Rukia held his hand. It was the only thing she could really do.

***

Shunsui sighed. The Seireitei was shambles again. They were up against one hell of an enemy too. He did not consider them as strong as the Wandenreich, but they were still a threat.

He held a captain emergency meeting. There were only bad news. Kurotsuchi informed them that the rebels were able to bypass his security system, and that none of them survived.

"What do you mean no one survived?" Soi Fon asked. "I arrested a few."

"They commited suicide," Kurotsuchi answered, annoyed.

All the prisoners had committed suicide. Hitsugaya thought of the prisoner in Hueco Mundo. He did the same.

Kensei came with some good news by revealing that the elite withdrew as soon as his lieutenant striked her mask.

"A mask that controls the mind." Kurotsuchi's interest was evident.

***

The Captain-commander gave the Substitute-Shinigami a 'surprise' visit. He informed him, based on Hisagi's report, that there was a chance that he might save his sister. Ichigo looked at Kyoraku. Shunsui could see the fire in Ichigo's eyes. There was some hope. There was light at the end of the tunnel.

When Kyoraku left, Ichigo looked out the window.

"I'll bring you back, Karin," he vowed.

* * *

A/N: Last part. It looked better in my dreams /sighs/. I did not go all creative, but the mask controls them. There's more to it though. It's more horrible than that. It physically painful when the mask is broken. Smoke coming out and burning psychologically painful, because...you'll see.

*kisei: "vow, oath, pledge" in japanese.

About Kurosaki Karin: [**link:** private/60390871555/tumblr_mso9jm4nfp1shbskd]


	14. 13: Ganbo

A/N: I do not own Bleach. Just those OCs.

* * *

Chapter 13  
Ganbo (願望)

Until Unohana gave her approbation, Ichigo was not allow to leave Soul Society. The orangehead did not understand since he had been in worst conditions before. He only has a few "scratches", and, in the past, even if he was gravely injured, he would still be on the battlefield. She told him that it was for his own good. He did not try to win the fight because the 4th Division's captain was quite scar to be honest. Rare were the ones brave enough to against her.

From time to time, Rukia would drop by. She was sincerely concerned about him. Fighting against his sibling had a great impact on him.

"It was not her. When I looked into her eyes, she was gone," explained Ichigo.

"Then it must be real," Rukia said. "The Hime de Cuori's spell has control over them."

The mention of the woman made Ichigo ball his fists. He was going to get her. He was going to avenge his sister. But how? How could he avenge her? Once again, he hit the dead-end. He could sit and wait for the Mascherti Jukyokage to make a move, because the organization was two steps ahead of them. It was a crucial advantage. With the Quincy, everyone knew what were they after, while with the Jukyokage, everyone had vague ideas. It was clear that they were rebelling.

Rukia had to leave Ichigo, because Ukitake needed her assistance. He had strained his body by protecting his squad; therefore, he was too weak to handle all the paperwork and to take care of his division.

Ichigo sighed and leaned on his hospital bed. Getting some sleep was not a bad idea. He had just closed his eyes, when two individuals barged into his room. Not ordinary visit. Ichigo watched Kyoraku entered a little annoyed. He had to enter when he was about to sleep.

"Oi, Kurosaki Ichigo," greeted Kyoraku. "How are you doing on this lovely day?"

"Get to the point," Ichigo said, sitting down.

"Yoshi," he replied. "After meeting our sister, what do you want to do?"

Ichigo looked at the Shinigami, and wondered if he was really asking something that obvious. It was one of those moments, when Shunsui was dead serious.

"Save her," Ichigo answered.

"You are willing to sacrifice anything in order to save her?" questioned Kyoraku.

"Of course," replied Ichigo without thinking.

There was a silence. The atmosphere changed drastically.

"You are willing to sacrifice anything to save your sister, eh?" Kyoraku arranged his eyepatch.

"There's nothing I won't do to save Karin," Ichigo confirmed.

"What our saying is honorable, but." Kyoraku was more serious than ever. "You got to understand that there are things that you want to do, but also things that you have to do. You want to save her, but you are also a Substitute Shinigami; therefore, you have the duty to protect others. You will have to fight her again, if you can't save her, you'll have to kill her."

Ichigo balled his fists. There was no way he was going to strike down Karin. That was out of the question. "I'll save her. I'll be able to save her. I know I can."

Kyoraku took a good look at Ichigo, and sighed. "Well then, all this talkin' made me thirsty," he let out. "Have a nice day."

Ichigo, his mouth open, stared at the man. Seconds ago, he was on this totally serious mode, and, now, he was back at being lay-back and chill.

He watched the Captain-Commander leave, then leaned on his bed. The man was right, though. With the mask on, Karin would not back down, and fight. Ichigo looked at his bandages on his arms. Even if he was her brother, it did not stop her from wounding him. Things were going to be different from now on. He knew the weak point. Break the mask, save Karin. It was easier said than done. It was not like she would let him near her mask at the first place. Besides, when her comrade's mask was broken, she retreated with everyone else.

"Save and protect," Ichigo mumbled.

Desire to save, duty to protect. It did not matter, he was going to save her. Impossible was not in his dictionary. He was Kurosaki Ichigo after all.

* * *

A/N: = n = short chapter, gomen. so happy that i had my first review yesterday! pairings, pairings will come, though it got to come natural. right now ichiruki had some short moments there and there.

*ganbo: japanese for "desire, wish, aspiration"


	15. 14: Noko koto

A/N: I do not own Bleach, but I do own the OCs.

* * *

Chapter 14  
Noto koto (遺事)

"Bring her to me."

"Come on, girl, move."

"Move alon', missy."

"She's messin' with us, boys."

"Just throw in. I do not have all day."

The two guards threw her on the table, and chained her arms and legs. The doctor examined her bruises surrounding her eye, and then took a bottle from a shelf.

"Now, now, girl, do not move. It will hurt less."

He poured the liquid on her bruises, and smokes started too formed. She started to yell. She wanted to push the doctor away, but those chains were binding. She could not escape the torture. She had to endure it all.

"My, my, Shizuka," said the Queen looking at the girl entering the room. "You arrive at last."

Shizuka did not answer, and went straight to her designated seat. As she walked there, her eye met a mirror. She could see that part of her face covered by bandages. For the time being, she could not use one of her eyes. Her hair was covering part of the bandage.

"Why are you still standing? Are you contemplating your ugliness in the mirror?" mocked the Regina. "It's your fault if you could not protect your mask."

The words did not affect the young woman. She sat down in silence. Dinner was served right after.

It was silent at the table. What was there to talk about? How many innocent they killed? There was nothing to be proud of.

"You did well, my little puppets," congratulated the Regina. She found it funny, and she was not hiding it. What was better than twisting the knife in the wound? It was one of the best ways to torture poor unfortunate souls.

Megumi could hold back her tears, and did her best not make too much noise. Katashi was looking at 'Mama' in disgust. Ryo ignored the comment, and continued to eat. Nobuyuki was so tense that he broke his chopsticks. Shizuka just felt numb. Karin was angry, but was keeping it in.

"Don't you have anything to say, my lovelies," the Queen continued, like if it was not enough.

Once again no one said a word, but Karin was at the verge of exploding. She had good reasons. What was better than to remember that you nearly end your brother's life, because some sick lady had literally made you to?

The woman was not satisfied. She noticed Karin's heavy breathing and Nobuyuki's chopsticks. Just one more push, she thought.

"Well Karin, I must admit that you were a better fight than I expected," she commented. "You still need to polish your skills some more, and you will be able to slice the Substitute Shinigami in cubes."

Karin glared at the woman. Katashi, who was right by her side, gave her a warning stare. She looked away. "I'll polish them," she replied not hiding her anger.

"Perfect, I'm delighted to hear that," the Queen exclaimed. "Without Kurosaki Ichigo, the Seireitei does not stand a chance against us."

To hear that made Karin sick. She stood up, and slammed her hands on the table. Everyone turned their eyes on her.

"Do you have something to say, my dear?" the Regina questioned.

"How dare you say that," Karin let out, even if Katashi was eying her and mouthing her to stop. "Like I would kill my brother."

"You will," the Regina replied. "You can't defy my orders or defeat me."

Karin looked at the knife by her side. All she had to do is to flash steps towards the woman and stab her numerous times.

The lady started to laugh, and Karin stared in her deep bewitching eyes.

"You are adorable, my doll," she complimented. "My spell is unbreakable. No will is strong enough to defy it." She continued to laugh. "Did you think of the consequences of murdering me? There's no doubt that you will be killed for your treason. Then again, if you escape, do you really think that the Seireitei will welcome you with open arms."?

"My brother will," Karin retorted.

"You brother cannot defy orders. From the moment you have invaded and killed Shinigamis, you have become criminals. You will be sentence to death or, maybe, prison in one of the lowest levels," the Hime di Cuori added.

Ryo, suddenly, gave a fuck. "I don't like what you are implying. We are not dependent of you."

"You are. I shelter you, I feed you, I train you, I teach you and I dress you. I am the one taking care of you. I am the one who protects you from the authority," she replied.

She was right.

"As a token of gratitude, you should be happily working for me. Of course, I cannot be too trustworthy of you, so I make you wear these masks. You become the most obedient soldiers I ever had. Mi burloni. It's just unfortunate that once I take of those masks from your face, you keep all those memories." She stood up, and went behind Karin. "You are mine. My puppets." She leaned forward and whispered to Karin's ear. "Your brother pleading for you to stop, what a sight. Stop being foolish and think that he will save you. My power over you cannot be defied."

Tears threaten to fall, but Karin held them back. It hurt. It hurt so much. All those memories, she wanted them to disappear. It only thing keeping her alive was that foolish hope she had.

"Ichi-nii will save me. There's nothing you can do about it."

"Fool."

The Queen had left the dining room with a smile on her face that she hid with her fan. Katashi told her that she should not give in, because that was what the woman seek. She wanted to crush their hopes over and over again. She wanted to break them down, because they would be more obedient. She knew that there were many flaws in her spell, which is why she was trying so hard. Karin wondered how he could endure it all.

"Think about the happy memories. Keep the faith. Know that we are all here for each other."

"Corny," she shivered.

* * *

A/N: Filler-ish. I wonder if I should make a flashback about the time between their drafting and the invasion. At least, you know about the mask. And how evil is that woman. I don't really like filler-ish chapters, but they are necessary for character and relationship development (I am the action or dark type lol so fluff and romance are not my best.)

*noto koto: "memories, reminiscence" in japanese 


	16. 15: Unmei

A/N: I do not own Bleach, but I do own the OCs.

* * *

Chapter 15

Unmei (運命)

The moment Unohana gave her blessings, Ichigo went straight home. He finally could leave the 4th's barracks. It was not that he hated the place; he could not bear to stay in bed. Of course when he got back home, reality 'punched' him in the face. He had university assignments to hand in, and more. Luckily he had ingenious ways to make up with barely being in school and handing his work on time. He also had to make up with Yuzu for missing May 6th aka the twins birthday aka their 16th birthday. Time was flying so fast.

After his first day in school in so long, he took some time to catch up with his friends. They had not changed that much. Orihime, Chad, Ishida (A/N: I think they would still be friends...right?), Tatsuki, Mizuiro and Keigo. They all went into the same university - in different programs - and still kept touch with each other.

To celebrate Ichigo's return to the living, they went to Orihime and Tatsuki's apartment (A/N: They moved in together.). Ishida and Orihime were cooking, while the others were joking around. Keigo was showing off his "muscles", but his display went quickly to an end, when Tatsuki sent kicked him. The two started to argue. While they were in the middle of their heated discussion, Orihime revealed that they were going out together, which surprised Ichigo.

The evening passed, and, soon, everyone had to leave due to a bunch of reasons: work, projects and etc. While they left, Ishida took the opportunity to chat privately with Ichigo. It was the first time in so long. The atmosphere was awkward. Ishida decided to go straight to the point.

Ishida cleared his throat. "Your sister, Yuzu, is one of the best archers I've seen," he said.

Ichigo eyed him. He was not dumb enough to not understand what the Quincy meant.

"No, she won't start-" the orange head started.

"She already has started to train," Ishida cut his friend off. "She came to me by herself."

"I'm not approving any of this," Ichigo made it clear.

"Ever since she can see clearly, she's been in greater danger," Ishida explained, keeping his cool.

"So, she unlocked those powers by herself," Ichigo said, clearly putting the blame on the other.

"You think I want to form a new Wandereich?" Uryu asked, annoyed.

Ichigo's eyes met the other's. It was preferable not to answer that question. Besides, he doubts his friend would have.

The atmosphere was tense. Both took some time to relax, before continuing this conversation.

"The trauma that she had that night must have been the reason," said Ishida. It was only a hypothesis, but a well-founded one.

"I already lost one sister...I can't afford to lose the other." A hint of sadness and guilt could be heard in his voice.

Uryu crossed his arms. "With proper training, Yuzu could guarantee her safety. Well, at least, assure it."

"Maybe, but haven't you think that she could also be kidnapped if they realize that she is also a special one?" Ichigo questioned.

"What did you expect? Your father is an ex-Captain and your mom is a Quincy. On top of that, you are the mismatch of every race and the Substitute Shinigami. You were totally positive that nothing was going to happen in the future." Uryu rolled his eyes. He was only being logical. The danger had always been there.

"Guess I was a fool to believe I could always protect them, right?" Ichigo's morale was crushed.

Ishida stopped talking, and both continued to walk in silence. Then, they parted ways to their respective homes.

Arrived to his, Ichigo found it strange not to see Yuzu around cleaning. The house was already spotless. His father left a note that he would be home late.

Asudden, he felt some spiritual pressure coming from the backyard. It was nothing he was used to. Not a Hollow, not a Quincy, not an Arrancar, not a Shinigami, not even a bastard Jukyokage. Ichigo went to check, and saw Yuzu. She was practicing her aim. He stayed there, and watched her. He had miss on a lot, and was still missing on a lot.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he did not notice his sister, who was now in front of him.

"Ichi-nii. Ichi-nii." She waved a hand in front of his eyes, and made him jump.

"Oh, Yuzu," he whispered.

She was slightly worried. It was evident in her eyes.

"Yuzu, be careful, aight?" he told her, patting her head.

She nodded and smiled at him. One sister was enough; he could not afford to lose them both. His heart would not take it. It was barely hanging on.

It was the middle of the night, when a sudden spiritual pressure could be felt. To whom belong that reiatsu? It was way stronger than the common hollows in the streets of the town. Ichigo left his body, and headed out from the window. He was soon joined by Orihime, Chad and Uryu, who also felt the reiatsu. (A/N: Team Ichigo o/) The followed the spiritual energy, and fell on three people who did not look like people they had met before. Behind them were pluses chained together and white masks.

"Yo, I've been waiting to meet the Jukyokage again," Ichigo said fire in his eyes.

"Nani," said one of the three, a little blond girl.

"Is that so?" said a tall man with a full mask different from the white masks, and a stove pipe hat.

"Was 'bout time, indeed," the last one looking like a young man the 18th century (A/N: Kinda pictured William in the first PotC).

Masked people, the Jukyokage, Ichigo never thought they would appear so soon. The sooner, the better.

"Teschio, we ain't gonna leav' dem to these kids, right?" said the young man, replacing his mask.

"We do not have time for peasants," answered the girl.

"Look at his eyes, Fiore," said the full-mask. "He won't let us leave so easily." He turned himself to the white masks. "Take them with you. We are gonna keep them busy."

Before Ichigo's Group could make a move, he went in their way. "I am Teschio, the Dieci di Picche. The young lady is Fiore, the Tre di Cuori. And, the lad over here is Girovago, the Sette di Picche. We are three members of the Carte di Fuhai, the hand-picked team under the orders of the Kokashu di Fiori. We shall be your opponents," He presented.

* * *

A/N: That ending is a beginning of a new fight.

*unmei means destiny, fate in japanese.

Well now you know that they need pluses for some reason. I'll explain to you a little bit of the Mascherti Jukyokage based on what was revealed.

The Militare ("white mask" | means military in Italian): they are the basic infantry similar to the Omni.

Under the Hime di Cuori (aka Mama/Regina) are the Burloni (the six poor unfortunate souls)

Under the Kokashu di Fiori (aka Jack) are the Carte di Fuhai (who could be sorta compared to the Espada, but they are not the strongest of the army)

*carte di (in italian: cards of) fuhai (in japanese: "evil, corruption, decay")

They have power of the Militare. They go from (10 to 2, 10 being the strongest). I revealed four of them already. Like everyone with a title, they have the card of their title. Teschio has the 10 of Spades for example. The messenger/beauty of the forest is the 6 of Hearts. I revealed her name briefly a few chapters ago.

- Dieci di Picche: Teschio [in italian: death's-head]

- Nove di Fiori:

- Otto di Diamanti:

- Sette di Picche: Girovago [in italian: tramp/rover]

- Sei di Cuori: Lunamaria [in italian: moon + Mary]

- Cinque di Picche:

- Quattro di Fiori:

- Tre di Cuori: Fiore [in italian: flower]

- Due di Diamanti:


End file.
